San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk gave a bullish outlook on Christian McCaffrey’s return from injuries that wrecked his 2024 season, telling The Athletic that McCaffrey looks healthy and explosive as he gears up for a bounce-back campaign. McCaffrey, the 2023 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, was limited to just four games a year ago as his and other injuries to key players derailed San Francisco’s season and relegated them to 6-11.
“Christian is arguably the best player in the NFL,” Juszczyk told The Athletic’s Vic Tafur. “He was the offensive Player of the Year two years ago. He changes everything, and he looks incredible. He looks so healthy, he looks so explosive.”
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Juszczyk will return to the 49ers to block for McCaffrey among other contributions to the offense, something that was hardly guaranteed during free agency. Juszczyk was briefly cut by San Francisco for salary cap reasons, leading to a free agency period that he called “the worst three days of my life.” Despite visiting the Pittsburgh Steelers, Juszczyk would end up re-signing with the 49ers when the opportunity presented itself.
“I got excited for a second about what possibly could be, about new beginnings and fitting into a new offense, all that type of stuff,” Juscyzk said of his visit to Pittsburgh. “And I genuinely enjoyed my time with Arthur Smith and Mike Tomlin so much. I have so much respect for those guys. But at the end of the day, it just wasn’t enough to trump what I had in San Francisco. I just couldn’t pull the plug.
“… Being able to walk into the building, and I literally know everyone. I know the chefs, the custodians, the PR team, the community team. I know all the players, like it’s just a familiarity. My home is there. We bought a house back in 2017, and like, that’s home. And to be in California, to be on what I think is a really good team, a team that I think has a really great opportunity this year. So there’s just too many good things.”
Since joining the 49ers as a free agent in 2017, Juszczyk has been a perennial Pro Bowler, has been named an All-Pro each of the last two seasons, and has been on two 49ers teams that have gone to the Super Bowl. There’s extra cause for him and his team to try and reach a third this year, as their home of Levi’s Stadium will play host to Super Bowl LX.
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Author: Steven Taranto
July 11, 2025 | 6:35 pm
