Injury update on Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey

Star Carolina running back Christian McCaffrey suffered an injury early in the season for the second consecutive year. 

In Thursday night’s game against the Houston Texans, McCaffrey left the game in the second quarter after just seven carries for 31 yards and two receptions for nine yards. Following a stutter step to evade a defenseman, McCaffrey went to the medical tent for evaluation.

It has since been reported he has a strained hamstring after he spent over 20 minutes in the tent. 

McCaffrey’s new quarterback Sam Darnold said the team will continue Caorlina’s early success while McCaffrey heals, and they do not want him to rush his recovery. 

“We’ll be all right without him,” Darnold said. “Obviously, we want him back, but I want him to take his time right now and make sure he’s good for the end of the season.”

Left tackle Cam Irving added that there is more to the Panthers than McCaffrey, and a good team should be able to succeed in the absence of a player.

“We’re a football team,” Erving said. “We’re not the Carolina Christian McCaffreys.”

Coming into the game, McCaffrey had 324 yards from scrimmage, which led the NFL.

Last season, the back only made it to the third game of the season as well before he was lost for the year to shoulder, thigh and ankle injuries. He had 59 carries for 225 yards and five touchdowns. One of the leagues biggest all-purpose running backs also had 17 receptions for 149 yards and a receiving score.

Rookie Chubba Hubbard and Royce Freeman, Carolina’s No. 2 and No. 3 running backs, will now see their playing time increase. 

Carolina lost rookie Jaycee Horn to a broken foot on Thursday night as well. He was their first-round draft selection this year, the No. 8 overall pick out of South Carolina. 

Carolina is 3-0 for the fifth time in franchise history, and they head to Dallas next weekend to take on the Cowboys. 

McCaffrey’s college career captivated the country

Once called an “all-purpose monster” by the Washington Post, Christian McCaffrey was a threat from the moment he arrived at Stanford, playing in all 13 games for the Cardinal his freshman year. He was the poster child for versatility, as he holds the NCAA record for most all-purpose yards in a single season with 3,864 in 2015. That same year, he was the only FBS player to lead his team in both rushing and receiving yards. 

Over his three years in Palo Alto, the former top 100 recruit caught 99 passes for 1,206 yards and 10 touchdowns. He had seven 300+ all-purpose yardage games while at Stanford and led the nation with 211.6 yards per game in 2016. He was the eighth overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.