Christian McCaffrey, Kyle Shanahan's funny childhood 'babysitting' story comes full circle with 49ers trade

David Suggs

Christian McCaffrey, Kyle Shanahan's funny childhood 'babysitting' story comes full circle with 49ers trade image

Christian McCaffrey is going back to Cali.

The former Stanford standout is headed to the Golden State after being dealt to the 49ers late Thursday night. And although McCaffrey made his bones 35 miles south of San Francisco as a college standout, McCaffrey's acquisition signifies a return to home in more ways than one.

That's because the former All-Pro tailback also has a long-standing relationship with Niners coach Kyle Shanahan. In fact, Shanahan "babysat" McCaffrey when the now-coach was just a fresh-faced teenager. At least that's what the pair think.

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You see, McCaffrey's dad, former NFL wide receiver Ed McCaffrey, was one of John Elway's favorite targets in Denver. He won a Super Bowl with the Broncos in 1998, a team coached by none other than Shanahan's dad, Mike.

The nature of the Ed and Mike's relationship defined many of their children's interactions with one another. McCaffrey, who was just a toddler at the time, told reporters that he was under the impression that Shanahan watched over him from time to time.

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"We go way back to when I was little," McCaffrey said, per NFL.com's Marc Sessler. "I think he babysat me sometimes."

Shanahan corroborated the story to the best of his ability, although he noted it was very possible that his sister, Krystal, could have taken on most of the child-sitting responsibilities. Nonetheless, Shanahan confirmed that Ed McCaffrey played a pivotal role in shaping his football future.

After all, there's a reason why Shanahan wore No. 87 in college.

"If I did [babysit him], I probably left my sister to do it very quickly and moved on. His dad was my hero growing up," Shanahan said. "I was close with Ed and his wife Lisa — that's really why I wore 87 in college. Ed was the man. I knew all his sons, they're a lot younger when I knew them, but they've all turned out be pretty good athletes and real good people."

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McCaffrey's mom, Lisa, noted that Krystal was her son's primary babysitter when the families overlapped:

Nonetheless, McCaffrey's return to California represents a homecoming in more ways than one. Shanahan and CMC will hope to find themselves in a similar position to that of their fathers this time around, too — hoisting the Lombardi Trophy in a monsoon of confetti at season's end.

David Suggs

David Suggs Photo

David Suggs is a content producer at The Sporting News. A long-suffering Everton, Wizards and Commanders fan, he has learned to get used to losing over the years. In his free time, he enjoys skateboarding (poorly), listening to the likes of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and D’Angelo, and penning short journal entries.