San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey is coming off a dominant Week 7 performance against the Atlanta Falcons, earning NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors after totaling 201 scrimmage yards and two rushing touchdowns. His explosive outing has even sparked early discussions about whether McCaffrey could enter the NFL MVP conversation this season.
McCaffrey is currently on pace for more than 2,300 scrimmage yards and is poised to surpass 1,000 rushing yards for the fifth time in his career. His production has been pivotal in the 49ers' 5-2 start, helping the team overcome a string of injuries to key players.
On Thursday morning, 49ers general manager John Lynch joined Bay Area radio station KNBR to discuss McCaffrey's impact and how the team is managing his heavy workload.
"He's been impactful from day one," Lynch said. "Christian is that rare breed where he's got unique Hall of Fame, different type of talent. But then, he mixes it with kind of a walk-on mentality. And when you mix that, as my old coach, Herm Edwards, used to say, 'When will meets skill, you've got something special.' And I think Christian embodies that as much as anyone."
Keeping McCaffrey dominant and healthy
Last season, 49ers fans watched McCaffrey miss significant time due to multiple injuries, prompting concerns about how much of a workload he could handle in 2025. So far, the answer has been—a lot. McCaffrey leads the NFL in both touches (185) and rushing attempts (132) through seven games.
San Francisco currently carries three other running backs on the active roster—Brian Robinson, Isaac Guerendo, and rookie Jordan James. While Robinson has contributed in a rotational role, Guerendo has yet to log an offensive snap, and James has yet to be active for a game.
Meanwhile, McCaffrey has been on the field for 84% of the 49ers' offensive snaps this season, raising the question: Is that workload sustainable?
"I think we're always cognizant of that," Lynch explained. "Made a move for Brian Robinson before the opening of the season, in part because we wanted to add something to help Christian. But then, also Jordan James, who we have really high hopes for, was banged up early on. Now Jordan's getting healthy. He hasn't hit the field yet, but we're loving the things he's doing.
"So we have plenty of other players that can play as running backs, and we think perform at a high level. I think Brian did the other night. Brian ran the ball extremely well. Christian was just in a zone, and we needed that game.
"But we are always cognizant of the amount of touches, and it's just hard to take that dude off the field. But we understand that's part of it as well."
Clearly, the 49ers continue to rely heavily on McCaffrey, but as Lynch noted, balancing his workload will be crucial as San Francisco eyes a return to the playoffs.