Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey While his teammates take a break for the bye week, he continues to focus on his rehab in Santa Clara and tries to get back on the practice field. It is hoped that McCaffrey, who has not yet been able to play in his first match in the 2024 season due to Achilles tendinitis, will make promising progress. The player, who is currently on injured reserve (IR), could start training on Monday if his recovery goes smoothly this week.

If all goes as planned, the 49ers aim to open McCaffrey’s practice window next week and potentially get him ready to play in the Nov. 10 away game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

General manager John Lynch discussed McCaffrey’s situation on Bay Area radio station KNBR Wednesday morning.

“The ideal scenario against Tampa Bay is that he continues to use that terminology, but he steps up, which means the volume of work he does increases,” Lynch said. “He’s been doing that and he hasn’t had any setbacks. Hopefully this week we’ll take it a step further. If things go well, we’ll kind of open that window and allow him to get back into training. IR Players can work on the sidelines, they can’t attend training, and Christian is part of that plan.” It stands on its kind.

“And now, I hope you increase the volume this week. I hope you don’t have any setbacks. I would expect it to go that way. I’m praying it goes that way because he’s done really well. Any of those (setbacks) And if so, I hope we have him on our team on Monday.” “We hope it will be a really good deal for us. We know he is the Offensive Player of the Year and he is a special game changer for us.”

Lynch tried to temper expectations, saying: “Just because he opens his window now doesn’t mean he has to play. So we have three weeks where we can activate him, so we’re going to play it by ear. We’re going to listen.” We will listen to the experts and hopefully he will be back playing on the field with us very soon,” Christian said. Then we have to be careful about how much we use it, and that’s a hard thing to do. Because he’s such a good guy.”

Lynch is also confident in the 49ers’ running back depth if McCaffrey needs a lighter workload as a starter. Jordan Mason and rookie Isaac Guerendo as reliable options. Mason suffered a shoulder injury, making this bye week a timely break for him.

“And then Isaac Guerendo shows that he’s really getting better every week,” Lynch said. “You see explosive speed and power. So we have the depth to get Christian back into this if everything goes well. And hopefully everything continues to go well so we can see him again.” Soon the field will be here.”

When asked if the team could limit McCaffrey’s snaps, Lynch emphasized the importance of doing what’s best for the player.

“With a guy like Christian, I think you do the right thing for the player, whether we have guys that can spell him or not,” Lynch explained. “That’s what we’re always going to do. It’s been a really good plan all this time. We’re not there yet. We’ve got to get there. But these things are going to start happening; okay, that’s what he’s doing.” In practice, we consider how much volume it can play at, provided it is ready to play.

“And then…we have the depth that we think we can do that with. I think if you keep Christian on the floor for five games, you’re a better team. There’s a reason we’re investing all this draft capital in trades.” “I think it’s a good deal for us for him, so we want him back on the field and we’ll figure it out from there.”