4 key observations from Christian McCaffrey’s performance at Giants in Week 2
By Dean Jones
Christian McCaffrey looked like his old self
After securing 128 all-purpose yards and more than 100 on the ground, it appears as if Christian McCaffrey is back to the player of old. A welcome change of pace for someone that’s endured terrible luck on the injury front since signing his lucrative contract extension.
McCaffrey was explosive, and patient, taking advantage of seams when they arrived. His huge gain in the second half was further proof of what a special player he is, even if it didn’t have an impact on the overall outcome.
The Stanford product averaged 6.8 yards per carry, which is outstanding. If there was one criticism where McCaffrey is concerned, it would be making a bigger impression in the passing game with just four receptions for 26 receiving yards from five targets.
This is all positive for McCaffrey. It’s not going according to plan for the Panthers, but they’d be far worse off if the team didn’t have the benefit of the league’s best dual-threat running back or if the player was suffering from his long layoff in any way.
Carolina has their backs against the wall in no uncertain terms after attaining a 2-14 record over their last 16 games. McCaffrey was solid if not spectacular in Week 2, but he emerged as the best of a below-average bunch once again.
Something is holding this team back. And it doesn’t take a genius to figure out what that is.