Each season, the 49ers talk about reducing McCaffrey’s workload to help keep him healthy.
This season appears to be the year San Francisco is following through. During the preseason, Kaelon Black won the backup job, in part because he stayed healthier throughout training camp. It became even clearer that Black was the No. 2 option when Jordan James was a healthy inactive for this game. That left San Francisco with only two true halfbacks, although Kyle Juszczyk and Deebo Samuel are capable of playing halfback in an emergency. Black played five snaps in place of McCaffrey on the first drive alone. The 49ers had even longer opening drives at times last season, and McCaffrey was taken off the field for no more than three plays. McCaffrey remained the preferred option on third downs, in short-yardage situations and near the goal line, but the early-down snaps were split far more evenly than at any point during his time in San Francisco outside of his first few weeks after joining the team midway through the 2022 season. McCaffrey led the backfield in touches, but Black led the team in carries, and both running backs were effective. McCaffrey could become more involved as the season progresses after dealing with an injury during training camp. However, if the 49ers are winning most of their games, Black could continue rotating in early and taking over much of the work late in games. McCaffrey remains a must-start fantasy option, particularly because of his receiving ability, but returning first-round value will be much more difficult if he isn’t consistently reaching 15 touches per game. Meanwhile, Black has emerged as the biggest waiver-wire target for Week 2 so far.