Will Christian McCaffrey play this week? 49ers RB gets major injury update for Buccaneers clash

The San Francisco 49ers have been without superstar Christian McCaffrey since the start of the season, and his absence has had a detrimental effect on their offense. The team has been waiting for his return with bated breath, and his extended absence is finally set to end.

In his weekly call with KNBR radio, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said that the running back is set to play his first game of the season in Week 10 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

McCaffrey's return will add a new dimension to the 49ers offense. He had a career year last season, with many touting him as a serious contender for the MVP award. He finished the year with 1,459 rushing yards, 14 rushing touchdowns, 564 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns.

The star running back had been dealing with Achilles tendonitis and even visited a specialist in Germany to help expedite his recovery. McCaffrey is finally healthy and cleared to play, which reportedly could have happened in Week 8 if the 49ers wished.

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Christian McCaffrey injury update: RB was good to go last week

Former 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman said on his podcast that Christian McCaffrey was fit to play in the 49ers' Week 8 clash against the Dallas Cowboys. But San Francisco opted to be cautious and not rush him back on the field and risk aggravating his Achilles injury. He said:

"I heard it from the horse’s mouth. He feels really good, and he felt like he could have probably played last week, but they wanted to be overly cautious and just give him more weeks of practice and more time to work that thing out to feel comfortable, and feel confident, and he does."

The 49ers would have rued not playing had the Cowboys pulled off an upset win, which San Francisco has been susceptible to this season. However, they fended off Dallas' fourth quarterback comeback to secure a 30-24 win and improve to 4-4.

The 49ers are third in the NFC West standings behind the 5-4 Arizona Cardinals and the 4-4 Los Angeles Rams, who hold the tiebreaker over their division rivals. San Francisco hopes that McCaffrey's return will help them run the table, win the division and set them up for success in the playoffs.