How Christian McCaffrey's contract extension could impact other 49ers stars

The San Francisco 49ers know they have one of the NFL's best and most versatile offensive players in running back Christian McCaffrey, and they are not about to let him get away. 

The team signed McCaffrey to a two-year contract extension on Tuesday that will carry an average salary of $19 million per season. That makes him the NFL's highest-paid running back and keeps him in San Francisco for the next four years. 

It could also be setting the stage for one of the 49ers' other offensive stars to be moving on in the coming months or years. 

San Francisco originally acquired the RB from the Carolina Panthers at the 2022 trade deadline, sending second, third and fourth-round picks the other way. It has been a fantastic trade for the 49ers. 

In his first full season with the team in 2023, McCaffrey led the NFL in rushing yards (1,459) and all-purpose yards (2,023) and won the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year Award. 

Now that McCaffrey is signed long-term, the 49ers still have some other big questions to deal with when it comes to the future of their stars on offense.

Wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel have both been mentioned in trade speculation this offseason as they get closer to the end of their contracts. 

Given the rising cost of wide receiver salaries, it seems unlikely that the 49ers will be able to keep both of them. They might already know that given they drafted two wide receivers in the 2024 draft, including first-round pick Ricky Pearsall out of the University of Florida. 

McCaffrey's contract is going to cut into their available salary-cap space, and that does not even get into the monster contract that quarterback Brock Purdy has coming in next year. 

The 49ers are not going to be able to keep everybody. It seems like they have made their choice that McCaffrey is more important to keep than perhaps one of their wide receivers.