SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey has looked good in his first week back at practice after being sidelined by Achilles tendinitis and is on track to make his season debut Sunday against Tampa Bay. McCaffrey returned to practice on Monday and has made it through three days of work on the field without any setbacks, leading coach Kyle Shanahan to say he expects his star back to play.
“He’s been awesome these last two days,” Shanahan told radio station KNBR on Thursday. “You never know (about) a setback or anything, but these two days have been great, and I expect to see him out there.” McCaffrey has been dealing with Achilles tendinitis since early August.
He missed almost all of training camp before returning to practice just before the season opener. He was scratched at the last minute before that game against the New York Jets on Sept. 9 and then had a setback at practice Sept.
12. He was placed on injured reserve two days later and spent the past seven weeks resting and rehabilitating, including a trip to Germany for treatment. The 49ers (4-4) are counting on McCaffrey’s return for a second-half boost.
San Francisco has sputtered in the first half of the season with the offense scoring 3.9 fewer points per game than last season. “It’s been awesome,” quarterback Brock Purdy said of getting McCaffrey back.
“Just what he brings to the table and really just firing everybody else up around. All of us com.
