Christian McCaffrey Out for 49ers vs. Jets in NFL Week 1 with Calf, Achilles Injuries

After staying mostly injury-free during the 2023 season, Christian McCaffrey will miss Monday night's season opener.

The San Francisco 49ers star was among the team's inactive for a showdown with the New York Jets:

NFL Network's Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport previously reported McCaffrey would not play due to calf and Achilles injuries:

McCaffrey dealt with the injury bug over the offseason, missing most of training camp and all of the preseason with the calf and Achilles injuries.

While he avoided any major injuries in 2023, he did miss the Niners' season finale with a mild calf strain, though that was mostly a precautionary measure to ensure he was well-rested heading into the postseason.

The last time McCaffrey suffered a serious injury was in 2021 when he missed five games due to a hamstring injury before missing the remainder of the season because of a sprained ankle in Week 12. That season, he was limited to just seven games.

In 2020, he played just three games due to several different injuries.

Since landing in San Francisco in 2022, McCaffrey has stayed healthy and performed well. He had the best season of his career a year ago, recording 1,459 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns to go along with 564 receiving yards and seven touchdowns through the air.

The MVP-caliber year propelled the 49ers to a Super Bowl appearance, though they came up short against the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime.

San Francisco was already short-handed in the running back room coming into the year after Elijah Mitchell sustained a hamstring injury, ending his season before it began. Mitchell was the 49ers' second-leading rusher a year ago, collecting 281 yards and two touchdowns.

With McCaffrey banged up, San Francisco could turn to third-year player Jordan Mason in the backfield. Mason had 206 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 40 carries in 2023.