CBS Sport: 49ers key starter ruled out for the rest of the season due to injury.

The San Francisco 49ers’ opening game on Monday Night Football, against the New York Jets, is quickly approaching. That will be the first step in their Super Bowl comeback. Fortunately, Trent Williams and Brandon Aiyuk will be available, so their holdouts won’t be missed. The 49ers are coming into their game against the Jets in good shape. They will, however, be very nearly well. This is due to the 49ers’ shocking injury update regarding their standout running back, Christian McCaffrey.

Head coach of the 49ers, Kyle Shanahan, released the initial injury report for Week 1 on Thursday. He noted that McCaffrey’s injury was a calf/Achilles when he found his name on the list. McCaffrey’s injury news was shocking. When a player is associated with an Achilles, it’s always reason for alarm.

It was unexpected to find McCaffrey mentioned in the report. Since he has been tending to a calf ailment, he was always going to be on it. Shanahan has been citing it with McCaffrey for the past month. For this reason, he missed a significant portion of training camp and did not participate in the preseason.

His citation of an Achilles was so illuminating from the start. Does that imply that Shanahan has been lying about his injury all along? Or are the Achilles and the calf working together in this instance? Should it be the latter, it wouldn’t be shocking.

Achilles tendon is often linked to calf strains or tightness. In any case, it’s shocking that the 49ers’ finest player would be dealing with that. Throughout the season, that injury will be keenly watched. If McCaffrey is sidelined or misses games as a result, the 49ers have a great backup.

For the 49ers, Jordan Mason has been a rising star. He can take up part of the 49ers’ workload without making the offense less effective. That’s probably what the 49ers should do, calf/Achilles or not, to keep McCaffrey on his feet. They had best hope that they can handle it well and that his Achilles tendon doesn’t become worse for the 49ers.