San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle and running back Christian McCaffrey were back on the practice field Sunday, participating in drills for the first time in weeks, a significant development as the team finalizes preparations for its regular-season opener.
Kittle, who tore his Achilles in January, was activated from the Physically Unable to Perform list and took part in individual, one-on-one, and team drills. It marked his return to practice 224 days after his injury. While his full participation for Week 1 against the Rams is not yet confirmed, his return to padded practice signals strong optimism for his availability, potentially before Week 4.
"It just changes things," offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said. "You’ve got two Hall of Fame-caliber players out there who are back out there getting their work in. They practice at a high standard, and they lift everybody up."
McCaffrey, who had been sidelined with reported "tightness" since August 10, was more active in Sunday's session, including a 25-yard touchdown run during 11-on-11 drills. He described his absence from practice as part of a planned ramp-up strategy to ensure freshness for the duration of the season.
"Obviously when you don’t practice, the way the media works now, it’s a firestorm," McCaffrey said. "But this was part of the plan from the jump—to ramp up pretty big, get nine or 10 practices in, kind of come back down and ramp back up so we’re fresh for the duration."
Coach Kyle Shanahan, who recently resumed his play-calling duties after recovering from a car crash, oversaw the practice. The team is set to hold a "dress rehearsal" practice Tuesday before traveling to Melbourne on September 2. Their 53-man roster must be finalized three days prior to that departure.
Another key player, defensive end Nick Bosa, remained sidelined with tendinitis in his right knee, which he had surgically repaired last September.