Christian McCaffrey hopes longer offseason leads to better health in 2025 for 49ers
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The biggest beneficiary of an extended offseason for the San Francisco 49ers just might have been star running back Christian McCaffrey.
A year after he was limited to just four games because of injuries to his Achilles tendon and knee, the engine of San Francisco's high-powered offense was on the practice field for the offseason program and is hoping to get back to the form that made him AP Offensive Player of the Year during a run to the Super Bowl in the 2023 season.
Advertisement
A healthy McCaffrey would be a key component for San Francisco to rebound from a 6-11 season that at least provided a side benefit of more time off in the winter following three straight years of long playoff runs.
'Being fully transparent, obviously last year didn't go the way I wanted,' McCaffrey said. 'It didn't go the way anyone wanted. But having this time off has allowed me to start from scratch and have the time where I can build a base again, come into OTAs, play football and now get back into it mentally, emotionally, physically in all ways. It was much needed and I'm happy we had it."
McCaffrey plans to spend the long break before training camp starts in late July staying in shape and becoming a father. McCaffrey and his wife, model Olivia Culpo, are expecting their first child 'right around the corner.'
McCaffrey looked fresh during the offseason program after sitting it out last year as he recovered from a grueling season and waited for a new contract that came last June.
Advertisement
McCaffrey had 798 touches from scrimmage in 2023-24 in the regular season and playoffs — more than 100 more than any other player in the league during that span.
That workload likely contributed to the Achilles tendinitis that sidelined McCaffrey early in training camp last season and forced him to miss the first eight games of the season.
He then injured his posterior cruciate ligament in his fourth game back and missed the final five games of the season.
With McCaffrey on the sideline, an offense that was the most dangerous in the league following his arrival midway through the 2022 season took a step back last season as the Niners struggled overall.
Advertisement
Coach Kyle Shanahan said he is aware that he needs to manage McCaffrey's workload this summer in order 'to protect him from himself' and make sure he's healthy and fresh when the games count.
'He is a psycho in a good way and so like he does everything imaginable every single day,' Shanahan said. "Last year he couldn't because he was battling injury all last year. And this year he is healthy so he is right back to being who he is always been and it's really fun to watch.'
McCaffrey, who turned 29 earlier this month, said the key as he ages is finding the 'middle ground' of doing the intense work to get ready for a season and making sure he doesn't wear down early.
But once he's on the field, he knows only one speed.
Advertisement
'My job is to put my body in the best position it can to go out there and be me," he said. "There's a lot of noise and sometimes there's a lot of things going on. My job is to go 100% every play and continue to get better. I just try to focus on that.'
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNET
25 minutes ago
- CNET
Today's NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints, Answers for June 22 #272
Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today's Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles. I about fell over when I saw today's Connections: Sports Edition. The clues are all just letters and a few numbers, not full words. And they're all basketball-related categories, marking Game 7 of the NBA playoffs. Read on for hints and the answers. Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That's a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn't show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic's own app. Or you can continue to play it free online. Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta Hints for today's Connections: Sports Edition groups Here are four hints for the groupings in today's Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group. Yellow group hint: Where you play on the court. Green group hint: Look for the score. Blue group hint: Statistics. Purple group hint: Not full names. Answers for today's Connections: Sports Edition groups Yellow group: Basketball positions, abbreviated. Green group: NBA teams, on scoreboards. Blue group: Basketball stats, abbreviated. Purple group: NBA stars' abbreviated nicknames. Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words What are today's Connections: Sports Edition answers? The completed NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for June 22, 2025. NYT/Screenshot by CNET The yellow words in today's Connections The theme is basketball positions, abbreviated. The four answers are C, PF, PG and SF. The green words in today's Connections The theme is NBA teams, on scoreboards. The four answers are IND, LAC, MEM and OKC. The blue words in today's Connections The theme is basketball stats, abbreviated. The four answers are 3P, FG, FT and STL. The purple words in today's Connections The theme is NBA stars' abbreviated nicknames. The four answers are CP3, KD, LBJ and SGA.
Fox Sports
an hour ago
- Fox Sports
Freytes scored go-ahead goal in 83rd, Fluminense beats Ulsan 4-2 at Club World Cup
Associated Press EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Juan Freytes scored the go-ahead goal in the 83rd minute and Fluminense beat Ulsan 4-2 in the Club World Cup on Saturday night. Jhon Arias bent a 25-yard free kick inside the right post and under the crossbar in the 27th minute to open the scoring for Fluminense. Lee Jin-hyun, on the counterattack, put away a cross played by Um Wonsang into a wide-open net to tie it in the 37th and Um scored on diving header, off a low ball-in played by Lee, in first-half stoppage time to give Ulsan a 2-1 lead at halftime. Gustavo Nonato Santana — known as 'Nonato' — stopped a clearance attempt near the top of the penalty area and tapped a shot inside the right post in the 66th minute to tie the score 2-2. Marcos da Silva França — known as 'Keno' — capped the scoring in the second minute of stoppage time. Ulsan goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo made a diving stop in the second minute and moments later had a leaping one-hand parry. The game drew 29,321 to MetLife Stadium, which has a capacity of 82,500. Key moment Freytes put away a first-touch finish, off a cross played by German Cano, from point-blank range for his first career goal with Fluminense to take the lead for good. Takeaways Fluminense is tied with Borussia Dortmund atop Group F and can clinch a berth in the knockout round with win or a draw against the Mamelodi Sundowns on Wednesday. Ulsan, which plays Dortmund on Wednesday, was eliminated from reaching the knockout round. What they said 'I think we gave it all. Like, we left nothing on the field, so we cannot be anything other than satisfied with our performance. We played a very good team, so it's not only up to us. Sadly, we couldn't keep up in the second half.' — Gustav Ludwigson, Ulsan midfielder 'We knew if we played (in the second half) with the intensity that we did against Borussia, we could win this game. That is what we changed (at halftime): mindset.' Nonato, Fluminense midfielder ___ AP soccer: in this topic
Hamilton Spectator
an hour ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Curacao draws 1-1 with Canada after Antonisse's stoppage-time goal
HOUSTON (AP) — Jeremy Antonisse scored in stoppage time and Curacao tied Canada 1-1 on Saturday night to remain in contention to advance to the knockout stage of the Gold Cup. Nathan Saliba opened the score in the ninth minute, and Antonisse leveled things in the 94th. The 21-year-old Saliba, playing in his fifth international match, scored for the second game in a row. Canada, which started the tournament with a 6-0 win over Honduras, has four points and leads Group B. Curacao is second with two points. l Salvador, with one point, faced Honduras in a late match Saturday. The Canadians will close the group stage facing El Salvador on Tuesday, also in Houston. A win against the Salvadorians would secure first place in the Group B for the Reds and a match in the quarterfinals against the second-best squad from Group A, currently Costa Rica. Canada is trying to capture its second Gol Cup title despite missing his star winger Alphonso Davies, who tore his right ACL during the CONCACAF Nations League third-place game against the U.S. on March 23. Curacao could progress to the next round with a win over Honduras on Tuesday. Canada pulled ahead after Saliba scored with a shot inside the box low across to the far post. The Caribbean team dominated the second half and appear to level things with a Jürgen Locadia goal in the 68th minute but after a VAR review it was invalidated for offside. Antonisse scored the equalizer on a breakaway play. ___ AP soccer:
