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A Bay Area native and NFL star praised 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey and the way he fits into his backyard.
In a conversation with NBC Sports Bay Area’s Jennifer Lee Chan on Radio Row Thursday in Las Vegas ahead of Super Bowl LVIII, Najee Harris of the Pittsburgh Steelers laid out his case for what allows McCaffrey, an MVP favorite NFL for credible viewers, shine like few others. running backs in the league.
“Christian McCaffrey, one of them is that he has a great team around him,” Harris told Chan. “That’s really good. He also has a great offensive coordinator in Kyle Shanahan. That’s amazing. I love Kyle Shanahan. I think he’s one of the best offensive coordinators out there.
“That he gives him good opportunities to win also on his routes, or even in schemes, and schemes that his defensive line likes to block by being in the outside zone a lot. You know, they run a fair amount of outside zone, or even trap plays.”
Harris, a 2021 Pro Bowl selection and the leader of the top seven running backs in the 2023 regular season, is certainly well-versed in what it takes to deliver for a team from behind in an increasingly demanding and ultra-physical NFL.
And, for him, McCaffrey, innately, has the skills.
“Christian McCaffrey himself does a good job of setting up his blocks, really the X’s and O’s of the game,” Harris added. “He is very detailed in his work, as Jalen (Warren) said. Someone like Christian, who I saw in college when I was at Stanford, has always been a versatile, explosive guy.
“Christian, behind that scheme, obviously elevated him more since he came from the Panthers because (it was) the right scheme (that he) fit into, and how Kyle Shanahan could use him. But I think this is the perfect place for him.”
Ahead of Sunday’s championship game, Shanahan’s scheme and McCaffrey’s duties within those plans are not expected to change drastically.
McCaffrey is on pace to end an already historic season with a huge exclamation point if he can deliver the expected result to San Francisco’s offensive strategy against the Kansas City Chiefs.
After all, he’s a proven NFL star who probably feels right at home in San Francisco.
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