Report: Christian McCaffrey 'Likely' to Miss 49ers vs. Rams With Calf Injury | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
San Francisco 49ers superstar running back Christian McCaffrey is reportedly expected to sit out the team's Week 18 game against the Los Angeles Rams.
According to Pro Football Talk's Peter King, McCaffrey suffered a calf strain during the Niners' 27-10 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday, and it is "likely" he will be held out of the regular-season finale.
Thanks to Sunday's win coupled with the Philadelphia Eagles' upset loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the 49ers clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC and a first-round bye in the playoffs, meaning they have nothing to play for next week.
McCaffrey left during the third quarter of Sunday's win over Washington and did not return, resulting in Elijah Mitchell taking over lead-back duties and rushing for a team-high 80 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.
Prior to exiting, McCaffrey had rushed for 64 yards on 16 carries, while also catching four passes for 27 yards. He did not score a touchdown, marking only the third time all season he failed to find the end zone in a game.
Per Dr. Jessica Flynn of Boston Sports Journal, McCaffrey has been receiving treatment on his right calf "for weeks," and he had it both taped up and stretched out during Sunday's game.
The severity of McCaffrey's calf injury is unclear, but lifting him on Sunday could have been a precautionary measure with head coach Kyle Shanahan feeling good about his team's chances of closing out the win against Washington with or without McCaffrey.
McCaffrey, 27, is in the thick of the NFL MVP race this season, as he leads the league with 1,459 rushing yards. He has also scored 14 rushing touchdowns and caught 67 passes for 564 yards and an additional seven scores.
Given that McCaffrey leads Rams running back Kyren Williams by 315 yards for the NFL rushing lead, he should win his first career rushing title even if he doesn't play.
Assuming the Niners do indeed make McCaffrey inactive for Week 18, he will have the opportunity to rest his calf for two weeks before returning to action in the NFC Divisional Round of the playoffs.
McCaffrey is arguably more important to the 49ers' playoff success than any other player on the roster, so there would be little sense in playing him in a meaningless game and risking further injury.
The Rams have also clinched a playoff spot, so they could rest players as well, although there is still some incentive for them to win since it would lock them into the sixth seed, whereas a loss could drop them to No. 7.
