49ers RB Christian McCaffrey injures PCL in loss to Bills

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — San Francisco 49ers operating again Christian McCaffrey suffered what’s believed to be an harm to the posterior cruciate ligament in his proper knee Sunday night time, leaving the remainder of his season in jeopardy, in accordance with coach Kyle Shanahan.

“I believe doubtlessly [it’s season-ending],” Shanahan mentioned after San Francisco’s 35-10 loss to the Buffalo Payments. “I believe PCL is normally a pair weeks, however I am not precisely certain but.”

McCaffrey is slated to bear additional testing Monday that can decide the extent of the harm and whether or not he can play in any of San Francisco’s 5 remaining video games.

For the primary quarter-plus towards the Payments, McCaffrey appeared poised for the breakthrough night time he has been searching for since his return from an Achilles harm.

That momentum got here to a screeching halt with 11:23 to go within the second quarter when McCaffrey took a pitch to the best. As he planted his toes to show upfield, he as an alternative opted to slip down with out contact.

After the 5-yard loss, McCaffrey jumped up and rapidly limped on to the blue harm tent. After a couple of minutes in there, he headed to the locker room for additional examination.

Initially, McCaffrey was labeled questionable to return with a proper knee harm, however he was dominated out at halftime.

McCaffrey’s newest harm appeared to occur about 95 seconds earlier than the play the place he gave himself up. With 12:58 left within the second quarter, McCaffrey burst up the center for an 18-yard achieve.

However as McCaffrey tried to keep away from the final line of Buffalo’s protection, Payments security Taylor Rapp tripped him by his proper ankle, forcing McCaffrey to return down onerous on his proper knee.

McCaffrey checked out briefly after the play however went again in a few performs later for the run to the best that might finally finish his night time.

“It was irritating,” Shanahan mentioned. “He had a fantastic week of follow and I may really feel his urgency and stuff and thought he got here out nice, trying actually good, and it appeared like he simply obtained his shoestring there. … I harm for him, and difficult for our group not having him.”

On the time of McCaffrey’s harm, he had seven carries for 53 yards and two receptions for 14 yards. That included season-best rushes of 19 and 18 yards.

Sunday night time was simply McCaffrey’s fourth sport since coming back from the bilateral Achilles tendinitis that stored him out for many of coaching camp and all of San Francisco’s first eight video games.

McCaffrey had been slowly working again into kind over the previous three weeks and mentioned this week that he felt a breakout sport was shut. And for about 18 minutes, McCaffrey’s teammates believed it was occurring.

“All of us noticed what he was doing, and he was on hearth,” quarterback Brock Purdy mentioned. “He appeared nice. Hitting the holes onerous and bouncing off guys and making some actual explosive performs, and that is large. … He is top-of-the-line operating backs within the league and also you lose him like that. I believe it takes away simply type of how we do some issues inside the offense. It sucks.”

As he did for the primary couple months of the season, Jordan Mason capably crammed in for McCaffrey whereas he was out. Mason completed with 13 carries for 78 yards, and rookie backup Isaac Guerendo scored the Niners’ lone landing of the night time, bursting off the left facet from 15 yards out.

Nonetheless, with the Niners having already misplaced stalwarts akin to receiver Brandon Aiyuk and defensive sort out Javon Hargrave to season-ending illnesses and frequently lacking stars — they performed with out left sort out Trent Williams, finish Nick Bosa and cornerback Deommodore Lenoir on Sunday night time — dropping McCaffrey felt like simply one other physique blow in a season stuffed with them.

The result’s a 5-7 group that’s mathematically clinging to postseason hopes however realistically simply making an attempt to snap a three-game dropping streak that features consecutive losses with at the very least 25-point deficits.

“It isn’t a fantastic feeling, however I imply, it is soccer,” tight finish George Kittle mentioned. “Folks go down and we have had seasons the place loads of individuals have gone down and also you want somebody to step up and that is what we want. We frequently want guys to step up, whether or not it is starters and gamers that now we have which can be already doing it or new guys who’re entering into the rotation. We’re within the NFL for a purpose. All these guys belong within the NFL they usually have playmaking skills. That is on all of us.”