Christian McCaffrey ‘Fired Up’ To Be A Member Of The San Francisco 49ers

The last 24 hours have been a whirlwind for running back Christian McCaffrey, the newest member of the 49ers. Going from game-planning on a rebuilding Carolina Panthers team to a playoff contender in San Francisco can boggle the mind if we’re being honest. And while there are still some feelings of shock, McCaffrey is stoked to be a part of the Red & Gold.

“I was just trusting God with the whole process and, you know, I gotta say, I’m couldn’t be more fired up to be here though. So, thank you everyone for welcoming me,” McCaffrey said Friday.

Talks had been in the works for some time, with Panthers brass telling the running back that his days in Carolina were numbered the last few weeks. Despite all the noise, McCaffrey kept his head down and tried to focus on football, taking the time to personally thank Carolina for their professionalism.

“[Carolina] were just very upfront with me and told me, ‘it’s probably going to happen’, I didn’t know who to,” McCaffrey said. “I want to also just thank everybody in Carolina, I don’t know if I’ll get another chance to do that…But I just want to thank everybody there. You know, I have a home there and a lot of respect for everybody there and thank my teammates and coaches. I didn’t get to say bye to them, they know I love them but, proud and happy to be a 49er.”

“I’m proud and happy to be a 49er.” Christian McCaffrey #49ers pic.twitter.com/HFIA5tarLR

— Tracy Sandler (@49ersfangirl) October 21, 2022

The McCaffreys have a long history in The Bay, with Christian attending Stanford, his brother Max was a member of the team from 2017-2019, to their father Ed McCaffrey playing tight end for San Francisco during the last Super Bowl run in 1995. It’s an emotional connection, for Christian and his family alike, to be playing for the Red & Gold.

“Yeah, it’s special, you know. I mean, you try to stay as business as you can and one step at a time, but it is special. Even just being back in the Bay Area where I’ve had so many great memories going back to Stanford. You know, having friends who are still here and knowing a lot of the guys in the locker room already. It all comes full circle and it’s special. And I’m lucky and proud to be here,” McCaffrey said.

At the end of the day though, this is a business. And while the decision to pull the trigger and acquire him (four picks one the next two drafts) seems costly, this is a match made for one another.

“In my opinion, [the 49ers have] the best run game and one of the most explosive run games in the league. How could you not want to play here as an offensive weapon? I can’t express how happy I am to be here,” the running back exclaimed.

I walked into the 49ers locker room and saw Spencer Burford. He's very excited about Christian McCaffrey joining his team and also an avid Madden player, so he wants his new RB on there too:

"Man, they need to get that roster update up! It should there within the next 24 hours."

— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) October 21, 2022

Now with less than 48 hours to go before Week 7 against the Kansas City Chiefs, McCaffrey’s availability for Sunday is a big question mark, with general manager John Lynch saying it’d be a “tall order.” And while the player himself will leave it up to the coaching staff, it’s his job to be as prepared as possible going into any game.

“The good thing about the game being on Sunday is that you still have two days. So you know, you can process a lot in two days and figure out a lot in a short amount of time and hopefully be ready to go. But you know, once again, I’ll leave that up to them but just my job to learn as much as humanly possible in the next two days and get ready to play a football game,” he stated.

To watch the full press conference with Christian McCaffrey, click here.

Follow @AmilianoFragoso

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