Christian McCaffrey has found one of the real highlights of the 49ers’ trip to Melbourne, and it’s not the football.
While San Francisco gets ready for Thursday’s opener against the Rams, McCaffrey has been taking in the city’s coffee culture and making no secret of how much he likes it. David Lombardi of The San Francisco Standard relayed his comment Sunday: “The coffee is unbelievable,” McCaffrey said. “I don’t know why people didn’t talk as much about that as they should’ve beforehand.”
Lombardi also posted the remarks on X, and the praise fits with what McCaffrey told reporters after the 49ers started practicing at AAMI Park. ESPN reported that he described the people as “unbelievable,” the food as “incredible,” and the coffee as “great.” The Sydney Morning Herald reported the same comments and added that teammates had already taken in an AFL game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday night.
The 49ers arrived Friday after a 15-hour Qantas charter, according to NFL.com, and they’ll spend the week adjusting before facing the Rams on Thursday, Sept. 10, at 8:35 p.m. ET (5:35 p.m.
PT). That works out to 10:35 a.m.
Friday local time at the MCG. It will be the first regular-season NFL game in Australia.
The Rams are scheduled to get there only about 24 hours before kickoff.
McCaffrey comes into the trip after a full 17-game 2025 season that included 311 carries for 1,202 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns, along with 102 catches for 924 yards. Those numbers came after a stretch of durability questions, and the 49ers have handled his workload carefully in camp.
He sat with tightness in mid-August, and offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak described that as planned management. McCaffrey later said the rest was “part of the plan from the jump” so he would stay fresh.
He also sat out the early portion of Monday’s practice in Melbourne that was open to the media, according to reports from Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area.
Last September, McCaffrey opened the 2025 season with 22 carries for 69 yards and nine receptions for 73 yards in a 17-13 win at Seattle. Those Seahawks went on to win Super Bowl LX.
Now San Francisco is looking for a similar start against a Rams defense that added Myles Garrett in a June trade and then brought Aaron Donald out of retirement on Aug. 30.
Kyle Shanahan said Monday he “definitely” expects Donald to play. Sean McVay has kept Donald’s status day-to-day and has not committed to Thursday.
Donald practiced Sunday in Los Angeles after two seasons away. With Garrett and Donald on the same line, the Rams would be putting two former Defensive Players of the Year together up front.
That’s where McCaffrey becomes central for the 49ers. San Francisco will need him as both a runner and a receiver if it wants to keep Brock Purdy away from obvious passing downs and help shorten the game against that pressure.
The trip has also given the 49ers a chance to settle into Melbourne after the long flight and the 17-hour time difference. Players explored the city Sunday, and Shanahan’s mood reportedly shifted from earlier frustration about the travel to appreciation once the team was on the ground.
McCaffrey’s coffee comments are a small part of the week, but they say plenty about how the team has adjusted. The historic game is still the main event. The 49ers just have to finish the week the right way.
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The Rams have also put work into the rest of the operation, especially the rushing game and the defense, with offseason additions like Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald adding to the sense that the support system around Stafford could get even stronger. Looking ahead to 2026, the expectation is not simply that Stafford will be asked to carry the offense, but that he may have more help than ever if the group comes together the way the Rams envision. The upside is obvious, even if the full picture still has to play out. [Read more 🡒]