Christian McCaffrey (Achilles) of the Niners plans to return to action in November after treatment in Germany

CMC recently returned from Germany, where he was seeking treatment for a nagging Achilles tendon injury. Rapoport reported that McCaffrey received treatment similar to a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection. Rapoport added that the 49ers RB could return to running on hardwood this week.

The fact that McCaffrey’s Achilles injury won’t sideline him for the entire season, as it does for players with Achilles tears, is a good sign, but not ideal for a San Francisco team that’s off to a 1-2 start without its star carrier balls.

In place of CMC, Jordan Mason has had a mini-breakout and should expect plenty of action from the 49ers in the future. Mason leads the league with 67 carries through three weeks and has already set a career-high with 324 rushing yards. The only other running back to look like this season for the Niners is Isaac Guerendo, who has a modest 19 yards on six carries.

Mason and San Francisco will look to get out of Sunday afternoon, again without CMC, against the Patriots at 4:05 p.m. ET.