San Francisco 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey was the consensus 1.01 in fantasy football drafts this past summer, even after the injury was known, seeing as we were told it wasn’t a serious situation.
Well, things have changed and the star running back has yet to play a snap in 2024. That said, we’re beginning to hear whispers of McCaffrey returning to action.
While that has the entire community excited, it’s also curious as to what happens to the stock of Jordan Mason. Will McCaffrey assume his elite role in time for the playoffs? What will San Francisco’s offense look like, not only after he returns, but sans Brandon Aiyuk?
We have the latest on CMC and the path of an offense that, just 12 months ago, was one of the most efficient in the history of the NFL.
What Is Christian McCaffrey’s Injury?
“Bilateral Achilles tendinitis in both legs.”
That’s the medical term for what has sidelined San Francisco’s All-Pro running back for the first seven weeks this season and had McCaffrey in Germany in September to work on rehab.
It used to be that an ACL tear was the most feared injury in the NFL, but medicine has come a long way, and we now know what to expect with knee ligament tears. The Achilles is a different animal, and one that has come with a wide range of results when it comes to players returning to action opposed to returning to form.
Asking McCaffrey to be the most valuable fantasy football asset the second he returns is too optimistic for my liking. Yet, that doesn’t mean he can’t be a valuable piece of a run to your league championship.
How Long Will McCaffrey Be Sidelined?
The 49ers have shared optimism in what McCaffrey has been able to do all week in practice. The coaching staff has praised his ramping up with consistency, and while head coach Kyle Shanahan said this week that he would be “surprised” if his star RB were active this week, the fact that such a thought is even being considered should be viewed as great news.
San Francisco has its bye in Week 9, which is likely playing into Shanahan’s doubt that CMC is back this week. Why risk it now instead of embracing two full weeks to prepare?
Fantasy Outlook for McCaffrey and Jordan Mason
Prior to suffering a shoulder injury, Mason was doing his best McCaffrey impression. No, he’s not the same talent, but Mason was largely handling the same role, accounting for over 90% of the RB touches and averaging north of 5.0 yards per carry in September.
this is a "where is CMC" play to me
there's no world where Brock Purdy thinks the in-breaker is open with the S standing in the window *normally* he'd be able to come off it and rip it to CMC settling on the goal line but he just does not do that when it's Jordan Mason pic.twitter.com/AHQeR64431
— Derrik Klassen (@QBKlass) October 22, 2024
Mason has been a phenomenal band-aid, but the 49ers aren’t going to shy away from McCaffrey when he is active.
Do I think there will be a ramp-up period? I do.
Could Mason return Flex value in the first game or two that McCaffrey is active for? It’s possible, but if you can move Mason today for a starting running back, I would.
- Week 10 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Week 11 vs. Seattle Seahawks
- Week 12 at Green Bay Packers
- Week 13 at Buffalo Bills
- Week 14 vs. Chicago Bears
- Week 15 vs. Los Angeles Rams (TNF)
- Week 16 at Miami Dolphins
- Week 17 vs. Detroit Lions (MNF)
- Week 18 at Arizona Cardinals
San Francisco’s schedule after the bye doesn’t scare me at all. We know the 49ers are going to be highly motivated since they need as many wins as they can get to make up for a slow start, and feeding McCaffrey is their cleanest path to success.
With Aiyuk out for the season, I think it becomes increasingly possible that the team could get creative with McCaffrey. Might they line him out wide and use Mason for some of the dirty work between the tackles until he is worked up to game condition?
Even if that’s the case, we have enough tape to know that CMC can win as a receiver. The second he is ruled active, he’s back in fantasy lineups.
The Mason situation will take tea leave reading as the time nears, but he’s going to remain a roster staple at the very least.
My rest of season rankings have McCaffrey as a top-15 play at the position and Mason in the Flex territory. If I could land Josh Jacobs, Kareem Hunt, or James Conner in a Mason trade, I’d make the move so long as you understand that you are playing the long game.
Heck, if you could move him for Rico Dowdle, a player who has already had his bye, and another Flex type of player (Jaxon Smith-Njigba range), I’d be interested — assuming that it fills roster needs.
All stats are from TruMedia unless otherwise stated.