The 49ers running back is looking healthy ahead of the 2025 season.
It’s a fresh start for the San Francisco 49ers in 2025, as they’re looking to put a disappointing 2024 season marred with injuries and frustrations behind them and return to the playoffs once again.
The 49ers were not up to standard on both sides of the ball last season. The run game took a hit, as Christian McCaffrey missed most of the season, while the passing game didn’t see its usual success with the running back and wideout Brandon Aiyuk unavailable as well.
Defensively, San Francisco mainly struggled to contain the run, as they reeled from the losses of key interior defensive linemen, while facing injuries there as well.
Now, hoping to turn things around in 2025, the 49ers are looking fresher, which starts with McCaffrey.
Injuries have always been a conversation surrounding McCaffrey, as the star played only 10 games in 2020 and 2021 combined while with the Carolina Panthers. But, he proved doubters wrong with fully healthy seasons in 2022 and 2023, although he battled through several issues in the latter year.
Then, in 2024, McCaffrey could never really shake the Achilles tendonitis that bothered him in both legs, limiting him to just four games on the year.
But, thus far this offseason, the star running back has looked healthy, which he credited to his offseason approach with Rehab.
“I feel great,” McCaffrey said, via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner. “I think this offseason I spent a lot of time kind of building back a base starting from scratch, so a lot of it was rehab and wanted to put myself in a position where I didn’t miss a day of OTAs and I could practice and play football again, be healthy and not miss a day, and I did that.”
“Being fully transparent, obviously last year didn’t go the way I wanted. I didn’t think it went the way anyone wanted but having this time off has allowed me to start from scratch and have the time where I can build a base again, come into OTAs, play football and now get back into it mentally, emotionally, physically, in all ways. It’s been much needed.”
McCaffrey is the 49ers’ most important offensive player when contextualizing what he does for the rushing attack and the passing game. Not only does he command a high volume, but his presence allows for things to open up in various ways, which head coach Kyle Shanahan exploits to the team’s advantage.
“You guys saw in 2023 how important he is to what we want to be as an offense,” offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said, via Wagoner. “He’s an elite player and we’re going to do everything we can to get him the ball as much as we can. … He’s one of our central players on offense. … He looks awesome, and we’re pumped up that he’s out there working every day. So I look forward to getting him back out there full-time.”
McCaffrey has been touted for putting his full effort forward whenever he’s on the field, with teammates and coaches noting him going 110 percent daily.
“He is a psycho in a good way and so he does everything imaginable every single day,” head coach Kyle Shanahan said about the running back. “Last year, he couldn’t because he was battling injury all last year. And this year he is healthy, so he is right back to being who he is always been and it’s really fun to watch.”
With his health looking good, what are realistic expectations for McCaffrey in 2025? Let’s first take a look at his last two healthy seasons.
In 2022, McCaffrey split time between the 49ers and the Panthers, earning 244 total carries for 1,139 yards and eight touchdowns, while catching 85 passes for 741 yards and five scores.
Then, in 2023, he had a monster year, taking 272 carries for 1,459 yards and 14 touchdowns, while catching 67 passes for 564 yards and seven touchdowns.
Of course, the 49ers will likely want to limit his volume a little more to keep him fresher throughout the course of an 18-game season. But, it’s hard to do so at times when McCaffrey is such a force as a three-down player and doesn’t want to be taken out of games.
San Francisco does have some depth with Isaac Guerendo, Jordan James, and Patrick Taylor Jr. in the backfield, but they don’t have the reliability that Jordan Mason provided as a backup anymore.
So, perhaps more of that usage is dictated towards McCaffrey’s receiving skills, where he may be less prone to injury.
Given his contract and his stature, the bare minimum has to be a 1,000-yard season on the ground for McCaffrey. Expectations should be centered closer to his 2,022 season, with 1,100 rushing yards seeming like a good benchmark to hit.
On the receiving side, 50-60 catches seems like the floor for a fully healthy McCaffrey, which should result in 400-550 yards. Touchdowns are where he’ll provide the biggest boost. The running back has been one of the best weapons in the red zone, and the 49ers mightily struggled there without him in 2024.
However, the biggest caveat is health. Can McCaffrey be expected to play 16 to 17 games with his prior Achilles issues? And even if he can, will he be able to demand that wear and tear on his body for another season?
His health may ultimately dictate how the team’s season should go, but the floor for a healthy CMC should be 1,100 rushing yards, 50-60 catches, and 400-500 receiving yards with double-digit touchdowns.