During Sunday night's snow game showdown vs. the Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers superstar running back Christian McCaffrey suffered an injury to his knee at the beginning of the second quarter in a 35-10 loss.
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That is, in particular his right knee's posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) was injured and may result in the 28-year-old being out for the rest of the year.
Breaking: 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey suffered a potentially season-ending PCL injury, Kyle Shanahan announced in the team's postgame presser. pic.twitter.com/oJeUma7Zhy
— ESPN (@espn) December 2, 2024
Needless to say, this has been a nightmare of a season for CMC, who has been riddled with injuries.
As many know, after missing the first eight games of the season, McCaffrey had been cleared to return following his recovery from Achilles tendinitis.
On this note, in most fantasy football leagues, McCaffrey was the unanimous No. 1 overall draft pick, yet just ahead of the Week 1 matchup vs. the Jets, he was announced as 'OUT' moments before kickoff.
All in all, fans had to wait until Week 10 to see the 2023 Offensive Player of the Year in action, and now he has suffered another unfortunate setback.
Christian McCaffrey’s fantasy managers right now: pic.twitter.com/7OjxAMXX2O
— Moody (@EricNMoody) December 2, 2024
Considering the new injury, if McCaffrey's does not take another snap in the 2024 season, then that means he never got a chance to reach the end zone. The nine-year player contributed 50 carries for 202 yards along with 15 receptions for 146 yards in four appearances.
Christian McCaffrey fantasy owners ready for the season to be over pic.twitter.com/LFStklGvCk
— Harecules (@harecules) December 2, 2024
Undoubtedly, while CMC was on the field, especially in the first quarter of the SNF game, he looked like his old self out there. To note, before having to come out of the game, he racked up 53 yards on seven carries in addition to grabbing two receptions.
"We all saw what he was doing, and he was on fire," 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy said. "He looked great, hitting the holes hard and bouncing off guys and making some real explosive plays, and that's huge... He's one of the best running backs in the league and you lose him like that. I think it takes away just sort of how we do some things within the offense. It sucks."
The exact play in which the injury occurred seemed to have happened around the 13-minute mark in the second quarter, when McCaffrey ran for 18 yards up the middle.
https://twitter.com/aryepulli/status/1863401582630724070?s=46&t=XefkerHuIm6GM_ZXVMMI3w
It appeared CMC had a shot to break one, until Bills safety Taylor Rapp tripped him up on his right ankle, and as a result he fell hard on his knee.
https://twitter.com/bigcarsonrocks/status/1863434604801122365?s=46&t=XefkerHuIm6GM_ZXVMMI3w
After checking himself out, he came back a few plays later. That is to say, with 11:23 left in the second quarter, McCaffrey took a pitch and when he went to plant his foot to turn upfield, he then just slid down to the ground without contact, resulting in a five-yard loss.
https://twitter.com/jmthrivept/status/1863402734755414389?s=46&t=XefkerHuIm6GM_ZXVMMI3w
https://twitter.com/christianr_vill/status/1863404076798509545?s=46&t=XefkerHuIm6GM_ZXVMMI3w
McCaffrey was seen limping off the field before heading into the blue injury tent, and then subsequently was taken to the locker room.
Upon further evaluation, after halftime it was revealed that he will miss the remainder of the game.
To point out, his exact timetable to return, with what has been confirmed as a PCL injury, is not known at this time. But, during the postgame head coach Kyle Shanahan mentioned it could indeed be season-ending.
https://twitter.com/sportscenter/status/1863448422067445889?s=46&t=XefkerHuIm6GM_ZXVMMI3w
"I think potentially [it's season-ending]," Shanahan said following the loss. "I think PCL is usually a couple weeks, but I'm not exactly sure yet."
An update with the upcoming MRI on Monday will give a better idea to see the severity of the injury.
https://twitter.com/fantasyinjuryt/status/1863440426402828351?s=46&t=XefkerHuIm6GM_ZXVMMI3w
"It was frustrating," Shanahan said. "He had a great week of practice and I could feel his urgency and stuff and thought he came out great, looking really good, and it looked like he just got his shoestring there... I hurt for him, and tough for our team not having him."
https://twitter.com/medspirationnfp/status/1863459445478408685?s=46&t=XefkerHuIm6GM_ZXVMMI3w
Ultimately, this is sad news for McCaffrey and all the fans/fantasy owners who were looking forward to witnessing him play this season.
The 5-7 49ers team, who are now last in the NFC West, will attempt to try and salvage their season without CMC and backup running back Jordan Mason, who also looks to be headed to the IR with a high ankle sprain. This means rookie Isaac Guerendo will presumably takeover over the lead backfield role.
