The San Francisco 49ers may be a blessing to Christian McCaffrey’s football career, but that doesn’t mean the Carolina Panthers weren’t.
Last week, while attending the annual Dwight Clark Legacy Series event, the Pro Bowl running back said his trade to the Bay Area was the “best thing that ever happened” to him. Now, in that context alone, the comment could be taken a bit sideways by his former employer, teammates and fans.
But McCaffrey, who later appeared on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football, said that there are no hard feelings towards the Panthers.
“I do want to make it clear that was nothing against Carolina when I said that,” he stated on Friday. “I have no bad blood and I love everybody there. I still keep in touch with a lot of my teammates there and a lot of the coaches who I had the privilege of playing for there.”
At 1-5 and a full week after the firing of head coach Matt Rhule, the non-contentious Panthers parted ways with McCaffrey for a strong return of draft capital. The deal ended up netting Carolina second-, third- and fourth-round picks in 2023 and a fifth in 2024.
General manager Scott Fitterer then flipped that second-rounder into the package for this year’s No. 1 overall selection—which ultimately resulted in quarterback Bryce Young. And McCaffrey, of course, went on to do McCaffrey things in San Francisco—tallying 1,244 total yards and 11 touchdowns while helping push the 49ers to the NFC title game.
All’s well that ends well.
