Fantasy football season is officially back, bringing weekly injury reports with it. After missing practice on Thursday due to a calf injury, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey popped up on the injury report with a questionable tag and another missed practice on Friday.
With the fantasy star’s status in doubt and concerns about his durability piling up after an injury-plagued 2024, is there reason to worry about putting McCaffrey into starting lineups in Week 1 against the Seattle Seahawks?
Should you start Christian McCaffrey in fantasy Week 1?
The track of Christian McCaffrey’s career has led to some of the highest peaks in recent memory, but also some of the lowest valleys as well. The star running back has five top-10 fantasy finishes to his name in his eight-year career, including four seasons as either the overall RB1 or RB2 in PPR formats. However, he played seven or fewer games in the other three years he didn’t finish in the top-10 backs, including an RB68 finish last year while making just four starts.
It’s truly a feast-or-famine situation where McCaffrey’s fantasy production falls. When healthy, he’s a game-breaker who can win a week on his own. He averaged 24.5 FPPG in his last healthy campaign on the way to NFL Offensive Player of the Year honors. However, he put up just 11.9 FPPG last year, posting weekly finishes as the RB10, RB14, RB29 and RB34 (the last of which he played just 25% of the snaps in before exiting with an injury).
While McCaffrey’s current injury is a calf issue and unrelated to the Achilles tendinitis which limited him for so much of 2024, there’s still reason to feel concern regarding his status. He was drafted in the first round in most fantasy football leagues this offseason, and if he wasn’t, he became a screaming value which was almost always scooped up by the end of the second. Most fantasy managers have invested premium draft capital in the 29-year-old, so it’s fair to worry.
Shanahan would not offer more details on McCaffrey’s injury during Friday’s press conference beyond his questionable tag, so the exact extent of the issue remains unknown. What is certain is the questionable designation he holds, as well as the fact he did not participate during Friday’s practice.
The verdict
Seeing a star fantasy asset go from full-go on Wednesday to limited on Thursday, then a DNP on Friday doesn’t bode well for his status come Sunday. That path doesn’t indicate that he’ll necessarily tough it out in Week 1 — plus it’s a long season and the 49ers have legitimate hopes of competing deep into the postseason. It’s difficult to see them already risking their superstar’s health in a Week 1 contest unless they’re absolutely confident he’ll emerge mostly unscathed. While McCaffrey himself said he “feels great” and plans to play, per The Athletic’s Vic Tafur, the star halfback sang a similar tune last year but missed the season opener.
With that said, it wouldn’t be shocking to see McCaffrey’s workload decrease on Sunday if he’s not fully healthy. The organization also traded for halfback Brian Robinson Jr. a couple of weeks ago, and while they only invested a sixth-round pick into the former Washington Commanders starter, he’s a very serviceable option at the position. Shanahan also said during Friday’s conference that Robinson Jr. is getting comfortable with the offense and doesn’t need to know the whole playbook to have a role.
While this could all be gamesmanship from the 49ers and Shanahan, there’s legitimate reason to worry. Fantasy managers with decent depth at running back may want to explore starting another player in McCaffrey’s place on Sunday to avoid the risk involved with a timeshare approach and a potential reaggravation of the star’s injury if he does play. It’s not the news one wants to hear regarding their first or second-round selection, but the season has only just begun and it’s safer to wait for more clarity on McCaffrey’s injury on game day and into Week 2 before slotting him into lineups. Even if your backup doesn’t have the best day in his stead, there’ll be plenty more opportunities to make up the loss over the rest of the fantasy football season.
