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San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey isn't losing sleep over Kyle Shanahan's plans to scale back his carries in 2026.
In an interview with The Athletic's Vic Tafur, McCaffrey admitted that he wasn't happy to hear this proposition from his head coach.
"Look, nobody ever wants to hear that you're going to get the ball less," McCaffrey said. "But no coach has ever planned how many touches I get. I've never had that conversation with any one of my coaches.
"That's like telling a 3-point shooter that we only want you to shoot five 3s this game. You just don't do that."
However, McCaffrey noted that he understood the why behind Shanahan's thought process. McCaffrey led the NFL with a career-high 413 total touches in 2026, a year after he missed all but four games with two lower body injuries. In 2024, he led the NFL in touches as well.
"It's probably a load management thing for them more than anything," McCaffrey said. "But my job is not to focus on that at all. It's just to be ready for 10 touches or 35, whatever the game calls for. So when he says that stuff, I don't get mad at all. I don't get mad or sad or whatever. I just train and prepare to have 35 touches a game and not come out."
Statistically speaking, McCaffrey had a phenomenal year. He tallied 2,126 scrimmage yards and 17 touchdowns on the way to NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors. But Shanahan has insinuated he plans to use other running backs more in 2026. He has indicated that second-year back Jordan James is the top candidate to spell McCaffrey in 2026, and 2026 third-rounder Kaelon Black is an option as well.
McCaffrey, meanwhile, won't rest on the laurels of his healthy seasons. He's seen the ups and downs of being healthy and injured, and that plays a role in his mentality.
"Sometimes you can get through a season with 400-plus touches and feel great, and sometimes you might only put in three games and you feel terrible," he said. "Football's a very brutal sport."
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Christian McCaffrey not worried about lessened workload in 2026
Continue reading...
In an interview with The Athletic's Vic Tafur, McCaffrey admitted that he wasn't happy to hear this proposition from his head coach.
"Look, nobody ever wants to hear that you're going to get the ball less," McCaffrey said. "But no coach has ever planned how many touches I get. I've never had that conversation with any one of my coaches.
"That's like telling a 3-point shooter that we only want you to shoot five 3s this game. You just don't do that."
However, McCaffrey noted that he understood the why behind Shanahan's thought process. McCaffrey led the NFL with a career-high 413 total touches in 2026, a year after he missed all but four games with two lower body injuries. In 2024, he led the NFL in touches as well.
"It's probably a load management thing for them more than anything," McCaffrey said. "But my job is not to focus on that at all. It's just to be ready for 10 touches or 35, whatever the game calls for. So when he says that stuff, I don't get mad at all. I don't get mad or sad or whatever. I just train and prepare to have 35 touches a game and not come out."
Statistically speaking, McCaffrey had a phenomenal year. He tallied 2,126 scrimmage yards and 17 touchdowns on the way to NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors. But Shanahan has insinuated he plans to use other running backs more in 2026. He has indicated that second-year back Jordan James is the top candidate to spell McCaffrey in 2026, and 2026 third-rounder Kaelon Black is an option as well.
McCaffrey, meanwhile, won't rest on the laurels of his healthy seasons. He's seen the ups and downs of being healthy and injured, and that plays a role in his mentality.
"Sometimes you can get through a season with 400-plus touches and feel great, and sometimes you might only put in three games and you feel terrible," he said. "Football's a very brutal sport."
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Christian McCaffrey not worried about lessened workload in 2026
Continue reading...
