San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey is set to make his season debut on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after battling Achilles tendinitis. This week, McCaffrey returned to practice looking as sharp as ever.
Jordan Mason and rookie Isaac Guerendo have stepped up admirably in his absence. Mason has averaged an impressive 5.1 yards per carry, marking the heaviest workload of his career so far. Guerendo has contributed with a 6.1-yard average per carry, aided by multiple explosive runs.
One benefit of McCaffrey's time on the sidelines has been the valuable in-game experience for both young backs.
"JP Mason has been a guy, when you make an NFL team as an undrafted free agent, we cut a third-round pick at one point to keep him, so I think that speaks to you about him always being up to the task," general manager John Lynch said Friday morning on Bay Area radio station KNBR.
"And JP kind of grinded through in this league as a backup player who closed out games, but was a really good special teams player. He got an [opportunity] when Christian has been hurt, and he's really had a fantastic season. He's of the mindset that he'll be ready whenever we give it to him."
The 49ers selected Guerendo, who ran a 4.33-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, in the fourth round of this year's draft, adding speed to their running back group.
"Isaac obviously has some special talent," Lynch shared. "We just don't draft workout warriors. We draft really good football players. But he happens to be a workout warrior, one of those testing anomalies that's just so gifted, explosive, and you can see it translate on the field. And it seems to be getting a little bit better each week."
Even with McCaffrey's return, the 49ers don't plan to sideline these two promising young backs after their strong showings this season.
"So obviously, you still want to get those guys involved," Lynch continued. "They can both help on special teams, they can both help on offense. You'll still see plenty of those guys."
You can listen to Lynch's entire interview below.
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