49ers RB Christian McCaffrey has a Ton on the Line in 2025

This is a pivotal year for Christian McCaffrey.

Nov 24, 2024; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) rushes with the football during the first quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

This is a pivotal year for Christian McCaffrey.

Either he will re-establish himself as one of the NFL's best players, or he'll continue to struggle and become one of the NFL's most overpaid players. There's no in-between.

That's why Bleacher Report lists McCaffrey among the eight NFL players with the most on the line in 2025.

"It might seem strange to say that a player who was the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year in 2023 has a lot on the line just two seasons later," writes Bleacher Report's Gary Davenport.

"But that’s where Christian McCaffrey of the San Francisco 49ers finds himself in 2025.

"McCaffrey played a major role in San Francisco’s run to the Super Bowl a couple of years ago, surpassing 2,000 total yards, averaging 5.4 yards per carry and scoring 21 total touchdowns. But McCaffrey’s 2024 campaign was a mess—an Achilles injury kept him on the shelf until Week 10, McCaffrey went on to play just four games and he averaged just four yards a tote.

"If McCaffrey recaptures past form, all will be well in Santa Clara. But if he doesn’t, he’ll be an aging (in running back terms) back with a fairly extensive injury history who signed an extension last year that averages $19 million a season."

The way I see it, next season could go one of two ways for the 49ers. Either they'll give McCaffrey the ball as much as they did in 2022 and 2023 and he'll get injured again. Or, they'll reduce his workload and he'll have less of an impact on the team.

Neither option is great. But between the two, I'd choose the second one.