49ers' McCaffrey has another touchdown streak on the line
Christian McCaffrey's 17-game touchdown streak may be over, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming to town and he's scored more against them than any opponent in his career.
He's not taking them for granted, however.
“I played against these guys a lot in Carolina. They're well coached, and they play fast and physical,” McCaffrey said ahead of Sunday's game between the 49ers (6-3) and Bucs (4-5).
McCaffrey has scored two touchdowns in each of his past three games against Tampa Bay. In last season's 35-7 rout at Levi's Stadium on Dec. 11, he had rushing and receiving touchdowns while amassing 153 yards from scrimmage.
What makes McCaffrey so menacing his ability to keep chugging along through defenders, according to Bucs coach Todd Bowles, who served as their defensive coordinator for three seasons before his 2022 promotion.
“He and Deebo break so many tackles it's unbelievable,” Bowles told Tampaarea reporters Wednesday.
“You have to gang tackle him, get him down, limit yards after catch, limit him in the run game.”
One way opponents have tried doing so is by grabbing McCaffrey's facemask, to say nothing of unnecessary roughness penalties like one by the Cowboys. Five facemask penalties have been called against defenders this season for that tactic, and the 49ers have scored on all those series (four touchdowns, one field goal).
McCaffrey has led the NFL in rushing since the season began (747 yards, nine touchdowns). He was targeted a season-high 10
times in Sunday's 34-3 win at Jacksonville, where he had six catches for 47 yards along with 16 carries for 95 yards but was denied the end zone despite late-game attempts to reach it.
Out of the game by that point was Trent Williams, who had returned from a two-game absence and provided a big boost to the offense, as did Deebo Samuel's return.
McCaffrey expressed his gratitude this week by saying Williams “might be the best player I've ever seen.”
Williams returned the compliment a day later: “I mean, dang, the crazy thing is I feel the same way about him too. I guess we share that in common.”
Such star power does not go unnoticed around the league.
“In Carolina, he was one of maybe two or three stars,” Bowles said of McCaffrey. “They have five or six of them over there in San Fran. They move him around a lot and do a lot more with him, as well as with the other guys. It's different to keep tabs on him. That's the difference from when he was in San Fran to Carolina.”
Well, that and the fact he's enjoyed playoff success for the first time with the 49ers and is hellbent on returning to the postseason in two months. Snapping a three-game losing streak last Sunday does not have McCaffrey easing up to face the Bucs, who've yielded nine touchdowns to him in eight meetings.
“It's a week-to-week league. Everybody is good, and in order to win, you have to execute that particular Sunday,” McCaffrey added.
McCaffrey, who wears No. 23, has scored 23 touchdowns in regular-season action for the 49ers, plus one in each of last season's three playoff games.