Christian McCaffrey hurt his left thigh on the San Francisco 49ers’ first possession in Atlanta on Sunday, October 25, sat out the rest of the first half and returned in the third quarter, but the 49ers lost for the first time this season, 29-20 to the Falcons.
The good news for San Francisco is that McCaffrey finished the game. The concern is that the team has not said what the injury is beyond the word thigh, and it hit a player the 49ers are leaning on more than ever while five receivers are unavailable.
From the tent to the bike to the field
McCaffrey was the whole opening drive. He touched the ball six times on it, running four times for 29 yards and catching two passes for 40, and finished it himself with a 1-yard touchdown run for a 7-0 lead. Something went wrong on that series. He worked with a trainer on the sideline trying to loosen the leg, then went into the blue medical tent and stayed there through an entire Falcons scoring drive. The club ruled him questionable to return.
#49ers @SutterHealth Injury Update: Christian McCaffrey is questionable to return (thigh).
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) October 25, 2026
He did not come back before halftime. When the third quarter began, he was riding an exercise bike behind the bench. A few minutes later he was back in the huddle for the start of a drive.
Christian McCaffrey back on field for start of this drive. #49ers
— Eric Branch (@Eric_Branch) October 25, 2026
He ended the day with seven carries for 39 yards and the touchdown, plus six catches for 61 yards: 100 yards from scrimmage on 13 touches, 69 of them on that first series. Through six games he had 350 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 77 carries, plus 28 catches for 190 yards.
A roster already stretched
Matt Barrows pointed out that the game plan leaned on McCaffrey as a receiver, after playing 16 snaps lined up at receiver the week before against Washington. That is because the receiving corps is depleted: Mike Evans (Achilles) and Deebo Samuel (hamstring) were inactive, and Ricky Pearsall, Demarcus Robinson and De’Zhaun Stribling are on injured reserve. On defense, a calf injury from practice has kept Nick Bosa off the field for every game after Week 2.
Rookie Kaelon Black carried the load in McCaffrey’s absence and scored his first NFL touchdown on a 30-yard run early in the second quarter, but also lost a fumble. San Francisco turned the ball over four times and was flagged seven times for 55 yards.
What comes next
The timing helps. The 49ers, now 6-1, have their bye in Week 8, so McCaffrey gets two weeks before San Francisco hosts the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, November 8, at 4:05 p.m. EST. The full league list is on the WhyNFL injury report.
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