Kyle Shanahan Clears Up Christian McCaffrey’s Injury Timeline

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan clarified that running back Christian McCaffrey's (calf) injury did not involve a setback but was simply too bothersome for him to play effectively on Sunday. Despite practicing all week, McCaffrey's calf issue has been intermittent and proved too troublesome for this game. During the ESPN postgame interview, Jordan Mason mentioned he was informed on Friday night that he would be starting, but Shanahan corrected this, stating that Mason was only told he would likely see significant playing time and didn't confirm the starting role until the day of the game. Shanahan addressed the situation to prevent any potential league repercussions. The excellent news is McCaffrey did not suffer a setback, and he will have six days to recover before the 49ers face the Vikings in Week 2. McCaffrey remains a must-start if available, while Mason is his top backup and must start if McCaffrey is sidelined again.