49ers Provide Discouraging Injury News on McCaffrey and Pearsall

It was only a matter of time for the injury bug to start showing up for the 49ers' star players.

Jul 25, 2024; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey answers questions at a press conference following Day 3 of training camp at SAP Performance Facility. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports / D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports

The injury bug has shown up at training camp for the San Francisco 49ers.

First, it was a case of hamstring pulls for several players like rookies Isaac Guerendo and Jacob Cowing. Now, it has found their star player in running back Christian McCaffrey.

"Christian has a calf strain. He did it a couple days ago," said Shanahan. "It's alright. He didn't pull it or anything, but you guys probably won't see him in this preseason."

Shanahan went on to say that McCaffrey will miss a couple weeks of practice. So, it is not time to panic on McCaffrey. The 49ers are clearly being extra cautious with him. Besides, I sincerely doubt this injury was the determining factor for whether or not McCaffrey was going to play in the preseason.

He most likely never was going to. That isn't the 49ers' style to trot out their core star players like that. Not every star player will be held out of the preseason, but McCaffrey is certainly at the top of it among the few. His calf strain will, however, be something worth monitoring when the regular season commences. Chances are that it could pop up again, so keep this injury noted.

McCaffrey wasn't the only player that the 49ers provided discouraging injury news on. Rookie receiver Ricky Pearsall has found himself bitten by the injury bug yet again. Just over a week ago he was dealing with a hamstring injury. This time he has injured something else.

"He tweaked his shoulder. It's something that he did in OTAs," said Shanahan. "I don't know if it's something too serious, but that's why we removed him halfway through practice."

So Pearsall has reinjured the same shoulder from OTAs, which explains why he wore the blue no-contract jersey for it. This injury is exactly why it is worth noting the calf strain that McCaffrey sustained. Pearsall had the same injury pop up just two months later after only a week of participating in training camp.

He can't even build himself some momentum because of all the lost time and limitations due to the injuries. Considering Brandon Aiyuk could be on the way out, this is a very discouraging update. The 49ers need Pearsall out there to get up to speed and develop. There is no telling how long he will be out for, but I think it is safe to say he won't play in the first preseason game on Saturday.