McCaffrey’s visit, Fibel said, suggests he has a more serious injury, perhaps an issue that includes microscopic tears in the tendon, that hasn’t responded well to initial treatment methods and won’t resolve within a few weeks with rest. Given the nature of the Achilles, a weight-bearing tendon, Fibel said McCaffrey would likely be sidelined for at least a month and “probably closer to a couple of months” if he had an orthobiologic procedure.
“I think it more suggests this is an injury that they think they are going to need something more to augment his healing that may require weeks or a couple months rather than a week or two,” said Fibel, a sports medicine specialist at Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles. “This may be something where you realize the pathology is a little bit more serious and reserve a way to allow him to return this season, even if it does take a month or two with him needing a longer recovery.”
“I’m not exactly sure the timeline, but I know he’s getting a lot healthier,” head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters on Wednesday, adding that Pearsall “seems great” during their conversations.”
