Christian McCaffrey for Comeback Player of the Year? Why 49ers star has a case

On Sunday, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey will be playing in a conference championship game for the first time in his career. With Kyle Shanahan's team in the middle of a 12-game winning streak, acquiring McCaffrey midway through the season was the catalyst for the team's performance.

With another fantastic season for McCaffrey, who had the third-most scrimmage yards of his career, not only the 49ers are still vying for a Super Bowl appearance but he's also a strong candidate for the Comeback Player of the Year award. He played in just 10 games over the previous two seasons.

Even if San Francisco's season ends without a ring, pairing the player with three of the league's biggest offensive stars (George Kittle, Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk) has been wonderful for the franchise.

McCaffrey: again a star, now with the 49ers

Nobody ever doubted his talent, but the running back had so many injury problems over the last two seasons that it was difficult to envision whether he'd ever return to his best form.

And that's exactly what he did in 2022. Once head coach Matt Rhule was fired by Carolina, general manager Scott Fitterer started entertaining trade offers for him. The only request made by McCaffrey to the GM was to 'be honest' about whether a deal was close to happening.

Once the deal was made, everyone in the league knew they were in trouble. McCaffrey and Shanahan together were going to be fire.

In just 11 games with the team, the former Stanford running back has 1210 scrimmage yards and 10 touchdowns. He remains one of the league's best rushers, but his receiving ability was also helpful once rookie Brock Purdy took over and needed a security blanket.

McCaffrey's biggest opponent for the award is New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley, another star running back who dealt with injuries the previous two years but was healthy and productive in 2022.

Personally, I'd pick McCaffrey.

Who will the 49ers play in the NFC Championship Game?

San Francisco heads to Philadelphia to meet the Eagles in the greatest playoff matchup the NFC will see this season. There was no doubt these two teams were destined to meet in the conference game.

Although the voting for the award is already finished, and playoff games won't count, McCaffrey's performance is going to be huge if the 49ers want to upset the Eagles and go to the Super Bowl.

It's no coincidence that they have engineered a 12-game winning streak since he joined the team.