Believe it or not, Kyle Shanahan is going to face a lot of heat for mishandling Christian McCaffrey and his injuries. Yes, you heard that right, INJURIES! It all started when the 49ers scratched him just moments before the season opener against the Jets and people were fuming. To make matters worse, the backup, Jordan Mason accidentally revealed that Shanahan gave him the starter job way before the MNF game, but the HC denied it later.

McCaffrey was initially reported to have a calf and an Achilles injury in week 1 during training camp and the 49ers had declared CMC to be on IR after the game against the Jets. But things just got worse recently as the Niners HC informed the fans of one more setback that the RB faced. Adam Schefter’s post on X gives us a better idea of what’s going on.

Can McCaffrey’s situation get more complicated?

A reporter tried to confirm their suspicions of McCaffrey having Achilles injuries in both his legs. Yes, both his legs. Kyle Shanahan’s answer was a bit convoluted, and it might garner some apprehension in the future. “There was a report today that RB Christian McCaffrey has Achilles tendonitis in both legs. Is that correct, and is that a new development?” A reporter asked Shanahan.

Here’s what the 49ers head coach had to say about the injury: “No, during the time he’s had it in both. I think it started in one, you overcompensate, it went to the other. But mainly one of them has just been bothering him, but he’s had it in both.” NBC’s Matt Maiocco initially sparked the conversation of the Bilateral Achilles Tendinitis on the 49ers Talk Podcast and things have gone haywire since. Just a few moments earlier, Schefter also confirmed that the injury was indeed a Bilateral Achilles Tendinitis.

Mind begs the question of how an injury can just “went to the other?” Shanahan made it sound like Christian McCaffrey had calf and Achilles tendinitis issues in just one leg after the Jets game. “You know, it’s not just a calf. It’s his Achilles and, you know, the Achilles has tendinitis, and that stuff comes and goes,” Shanahan said a few weeks earlier and added that McCaffrey is very “diligent” about tending to his injuries.

So, McCaffrey is “overcompensating” his injured self but earlier was very “diligent” about fixing the injury? Amidst all these not-so-well-thought-out answers, there have been some interesting developments in this bizarre saga of Christian McCaffrey’s injury.

Christian McCaffrey globetrotting

A week ago, news broke out that the San Francisco 49ers All-Pro RB took a trip to Germany in hopes of getting more answers about his Achilles Tendinitis. Shanahan mentioned then that McCaffrey would be eligible to return for the week 6 game against the Seattle Seahawks. But now, that seems like a far-fetched possibility. However, it was Ian Rapoport who tried to appease everyone.

Per the ESPN insider, McCaffrey could hit the turf as soon as early November and suggested that they “could run on hard ground this week.” By going through all this, it’s not clear whether CMC had both injuries at the same time, or if they occurred one after the other. Hopefully, the 3x Pro Bowler returns soon because the Bay Area team is really struggling right now as they stand 2-2 heading into week 5.

Another important thing to note here is that Dre Greenlaw had Achilles Tendinitis for months and then ruptured his Achilles in the Super Bowl. He’ll not practice until he’s cleared by the medical personnel. It’s just a speculation, but McCaffrey went through the same thing but got to know about it way down the line.

For now, we can just hope to see him return in early November.