The oblique injury Christian McCaffrey sustained in the San Francisco 49ers' Week 6 loss to the Cleveland Browns showed the risk they are taking by leaning on their do-it-all running back so much.

But that scare won't change head coach Kyle Shanahan's approach with the NFL's rushing leader.

Shanahan revealed on Thursday that McCaffrey's injury was solely an oblique issue, and not also a problem with his rib as had been feared, providing encouragement he could feature in Monday's primetime clash with the Minnesota Vikings.

Despite leaving the game against the Browns early in the second half, McCaffrey is still on pace for 377 touches, which would be the second-most in 49er history behind Roger Craig, who logged 386 in 1988. If he stays healthy, it's not out of the question he could break Craig's record.

With the 49ers anticipated by most to go deep into the postseason, such a reliance on McCaffrey figures to heighten the likelihood of him succumbing to wear and tear when San Francisco needs him the most.

Yet Shanahan sees no problem in continuing to use McCaffrey to such a degree.

Asked if such usage is sustainable, Shanahan replied: 

“I mean, we treat him as our starting running back. So, I don’t really think of how many touches we want to get somebody in a year, that’s week-to-week and how the game goes. But, he gets a lot more extra because he gets thrown to so much in the passing game. I’m happy with how he’s being used. I’m happy with how he’s been playing, and we’ll see how the rest of the year goes.”

McCaffrey is second in the NFL in scrimmage yards with 730, trailing only Tyreek Hill, and has nine touchdowns to his name through six games.

He has scored a touchdown in his last 15 games for the 49ers, including the postseason. Should he score a touchdown in the next two games for San Francisco, he would tie Lenny Moore's all-time NFL record of 17 successive games with at least one score.

McCaffrey possesses tremendous value to the running game and the passing attack, but the 49ers might be more confident in leaning on one of his backups a little more given the recent success of second-year rusher Jordan Mason.

The former undrafted free agent has a touchdown in each of his last two games and is averaging 5.6 yards per carry.

Minnesota's run defense has given up only 3.7 yards per carry but has allowed 47 rushing first downs, tied for the fourth-most in the NFL, meaning there should be opportunities for the Niners to have success on the ground regardless of who is in the backfield. Given the 49ers' ambitions this season, it might be wise for them to place a little more faith in Mason and 2021 leading rusher Elijah Mitchell and give McCaffrey some well deserved additional rest.

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