In his second game with the San Francisco 49ers, Christian McCaffrey rushed for a touchdown, hauled in a receiving touchdown, and even threw a touchdown pass to wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. The outing earned the running back NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors. However, nothing from that outing surprised head coach Kyle Shanahan, who has known for a long time what the star running back is capable of.
During a Thursday interview with KNBR, Shanahan was asked if he has learned anything about McCaffrey since the Carolina Panthers shipped the running back to the 49ers.
"I wish I could say I've learned a lot, but I just feel like I had such a good feel for him before he got here," Shanahan said on the Tolbert & Copes show. "Just knowing where he came from, knowing his family so well, I had a pretty good idea. I've always known he's a pretty serious dude and is a big professional, just how he handles practice, how he handles everything. That's been even more impressive than I thought. He's been unbelievable."
McCaffrey has 211 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns—not counting the one thrown to Aiyuk—since joining the 49ers. He arrived in Santa Clara on the Friday following the trade. That Sunday, he was suited up against the Kansas City Chiefs.
"It was pretty well-talked about in his first game, how fast he picked that up in the 24 hours and stuff," Shanahan continued. "And then, just having him the next week, just how detailed he was by that Wednesday's practice. And seeing him out there just this week, he looks like he's been here for five years. The guy works at it, and he's smart, and I think it comes pretty natural to him."
McCaffrey is preparing for his third game with the 49ers, a Sunday night matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Shanahan below.
