McCaffrey Against Denver: Ten Seasons in the Making

For Broncos fans, the name McCaffrey brings back a familiar image: No. 87 catching a pass across the middle, absorbing a hit and getting up with another Denver first down.

Today, that same last name comes with a different request.

Somebody tackle him.

When Christian McCaffrey takes the field for San Francisco against Denver at Levi’s Stadium, he will finally become an opponent of the franchise woven into his family’s history. He entered the NFL in 2017. Somehow, nine complete seasons passed without this matchup happening.

The explanation starts with geography—at least the NFL’s version of it.

Carolina drafted McCaffrey eighth overall in 2017, placing him in the NFC South. His eventual trade to San Francisco moved him to the NFC West. Denver, meanwhile, remained in the AFC, making opportunities to meet considerably less frequent than games against conference opponents.

The league’s scheduling rotation brings divisions from opposite conferences together once every four years. The additional interconference game introduced with the 17-game schedule provides another possible meeting, but it still leaves plenty of room for long gaps between particular opponents.

McCaffrey’s arrival also came just after Carolina and Denver had become unusually familiar. The teams met in Super Bowl 50 in February 2016, then again in that September’s season opener. By the time McCaffrey joined the Panthers the following spring, both meetings were behind them. Their next game came in December 2020.

That should have been his first chance.

Instead, injuries intervened.

McCaffrey had already dealt with ankle and shoulder problems during the 2020 season. As he approached a possible return against Denver, a quadriceps strain suffered in practice created another setback. Carolina’s injury report identified that new thigh injury as the immediate reason he was unlikely to play.

Panthers coach Matt Rhule acknowledged the personal disappointment, recognizing how much McCaffrey wanted to face the team he had watched growing up. But wanting the moment could not make him healthy enough for it.

Denver won 32–27 on December 13. Christian never got his opportunity.

Two years later, the schedule produced an even stranger near miss.

On September 25, 2022, the Broncos hosted San Francisco and won 11–10. McCaffrey was still playing for Carolina, so Denver’s defense had no reason to worry about him that night.

Then, on October 20, Carolina agreed to trade him to the 49ers. He arrived in San Francisco almost four weeks after its Denver game, joining a team that had already crossed the Broncos off its schedule.

The other half of the coincidence came November 27, when Denver visited Carolina. By then, McCaffrey had been gone for more than five weeks. The Panthers won 23–10 without him.

Two teams. Two games against Denver. McCaffrey missed both—too late for one, too early for the other.

Even preseason football failed to end the streak. The 49ers faced the Broncos in 2023 and 2025, but McCaffrey sat out both meetings. This is truly his first game against Denver, rather than simply his first regular-season appearance.

That would be an interesting career quirk for any established player. For a McCaffrey, it means considerably more.

Ed McCaffrey played nine seasons in Denver, from 1995 through 2003, helping the Broncos win their first two Super Bowl championships. His reliable hands, precise routes and willingness to take punishment made him a favorite during one of the most celebrated periods in franchise history.

His Broncos career produced 462 catches, 6,200 receiving yards and 46 receiving touchdowns. He earned Pro Bowl honors during the 1998 championship season and put together three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons from 1998 through 2000. Across Denver’s two championship postseason runs, he contributed another 23 catches for 361 yards and a touchdown.

Christian’s connection to those teams was personal. He grew up around the locker room, where his father’s teammates were the players Broncos fans spent Sundays cheering.

There is another connection on San Francisco’s sideline. Head coach Kyle Shanahan’s father, Mike, led those championship Broncos teams. Kyle knew Ed and Lisa McCaffrey well growing up, although he has explained that Christian was so much younger that he did not know him particularly well. Kyle’s sister regularly babysat the McCaffrey boys. Their families’ connection existed long before their partnership with the 49ers.

Now a Shanahan is once again calling plays for a McCaffrey, and Denver must figure out how to stop them.

Christian has long since established his own credentials. His 2019 season in Carolina included more than 1,000 yards rushing and another 1,000 receiving—evidence of why defending him requires more than closing running lanes.

For Broncos fans, today offers an unusual combination of affection and opposition. They can appreciate the family, remember everything Ed helped accomplish and still hope his son finds nowhere to run.

For years, a McCaffrey helped give Denver reasons to celebrate.

After nearly a decade of waiting, the Broncos finally need to keep one out of the end zone.