By admin 
SANTA CLARA, California — San Francisco 49ers All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey looked good in his first week back at practice after being sidelined with Achilles tendonitis and is on track to make his season debut Sunday against Tampa Bay.
McCaffrey Back to training on Monday and made it through three days of on-field work without setbacks, leading coach Kyle Shanahan to say he expects his star to play again.
“He’s been great the last two days,” Shanahan said radio station KNBR on Thursday. “You never know about a setback or anything like that, but these two days have been great and I expect to see him out there.”
McCaffrey has been struggling with Achilles tendonitis since the beginning of August. He missed almost all of training camp before returning to practice just before the season opener. He was scratched in the final minute before the game against the New York Jets on September 9 and then suffered a setback during practice on September 12.
He was placed in casualty reserve two days later and spent the last seven weeks resting and recuperating, including a trip to Germany for treatment.
The 49ers (4-4) are counting on McCaffrey’s return to provide a boost in the second half. San Francisco has sputtered in the first half of the season, with its offense scoring 3.9 fewer points per game than last season.
“It was great,” quarterback Brock Purdy said of getting McCaffrey back. “Exactly what he brings to the table and really just lets everyone else down. We’re all coming off the bye week feeling good and fresh and then you get (him) next to you in the backfield, it was great. Looks great moving around and it’s moving in the right direction. So we are curious to see what happens.”
Jordan Mason has done a good job filling in for McCaffrey with 685 yards rushing in eight games, but the Niners have sorely missed the reigning AP Offensive Player of the Year in the red zone and in the passing game.
McCaffrey led the NFL with 2,023 yards from scrimmage last season and was tied for the league lead with 21 touchdowns as he helped lead San Francisco to the Super Bowl.
After missing 23 games due to injuries in his last two full seasons at Carolina, McCaffrey has been healthy the past two seasons.
He missed just one game combined in the 2022-23 season – a meaningless game in Week 18 last season for San Francisco when he had a sore calf. His 798 combined touches from scrimmage in the regular season and playoffs were the third-most for any player in a two-year span in the past decade.
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