Kyle Shanahan reveals decision on 49ers' Christian McCaffrey and his status for Super Bowl rematch vs. Chiefs

There had been some talk Christian McCaffrey could be available to make his 2024 season debut in the Week 7 Super Bowl rematch with the Kansas City Chiefs.

A day on from their road win over the Seattle Seahawks , San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan put those suggestions to bed in a conference call with local media.

Shanahan confirmed that the 49ers will not open McCaffrey's practice window next week ahead of the visit of the Chiefs to Levi's Stadium. Having missed the first game of the season with the New York Jets as a result of Achilles tendinitis, McCaffrey has spent the last five games on injured reserve.

"He's continuing to improve but we're not opening it (his practice window) up this week," said Shanahan.

He will remain on IR for at least one more week, with the November return many had muted seeming a realistic timeline based on his progress.

But Shanahan confirmed reports that first-round wide receiver Ricky Pearsall will have his practice window opened next week. Pearsall, the 31st overall pick in this year's draft, has spent the entirety of his rookie season to this point on the non-football injury list.

Pearsall was the victim of an attempted armed robbery in San Francisco in August and was shot through the chest.

Having incredibly avoided any injuries to his organs or nervous system, Pearsall is now seemingly at the point in his recovery where he could potentially make his return in the biggest game of the season so far for the 49ers.

With rushing leader Jordan Mason now banged up with a shoulder injury, McCaffrey is the offensive player the 49ers are more desperate to get back. However, going against a Chiefs defense that is top eight in the NFL by rush defense Expected Points Added per play but is only an average pass defense by the same metric, it would not hurt to have an extra wide receiver with which to attack Kansas City.

But Shanahan indicated having Pearsall play immediately after opening his window would be a stretch.

"Most likely, I would think it would be a longer ramp-up period," Shanahan said. "But, I mean, health-wise and everything, he's totally good to go, but I really won't decide that stuff until we start watching him practice. But we're not going to rush it or anything. If he's ready, he's ready. And if he's not, we've got a few weeks."

Related: 49ers' emerging rookie could be in for larger role after NFL insider reveals details of Jordan Mason's injury