The San Francisco 49ers have a new weekly problem to solve after running back Christian McCaffrey returns from Achilles tendonitis.
While it is certainly positive to have the reigning Offensive Player of the Year back in the squad, the club now has to deal with dealing with his injury. Part of this will likely be due to limited practice work and the resulting numerous appearances by McCaffrey on the practice attendance report.
McCaffrey made his debut on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and totaled 13 carries and six throws on seven targets. He got through the game without any problems, but appeared as a limited participant in Wednesday's training report.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said before Wednesday's meeting that there had been no setback for McCaffrey and that his limited practice was due to how the 49ers handled the injury.
It wouldn't be a big surprise if McCaffrey doesn't participate in a full workout the rest of the year.
There appears to be no idea from either the club or Shanahan that McCaffrey's workload will decrease much this year. He averaged 21.2 touches per game last season and had 19 in Week 10.
Shanahan didn't seem bothered by the number of touches McCaffrey received in his debut, suggesting he will likely continue to be the workhorse for San Francisco. In practice, they will shorten his usage if full participation is not required for McCaffrey to be effective during the week.
That can all change if he suffers a setback at some point, but for now we can get used to McCaffrey not appearing on the attendance report as a full participant.