We are witnessing greatness.
You’re not just seeing the ascension of a great player – because you are.
You’re not just seeing Christian McCaffrey become the best running back in the NFL before your eyes – although you’re seeing that, too.
What the Panthers running back is doing during the first five weeks of the season is not just incredible – it’s historic.
“That boy good, that boy great. He’s amazing. Something we have never seen before – it’s something truly special,” said Tre Boston. “I’ve watched every single game and I didn’t know it was like this – he cold. Greatness – you’re watching greatness right there.”
McCaffrey added to his lore with another spectacular performance in Week 5, his fourth game this season with over 175 yards from scrimmage – the NFL record is six, in case you’re wondering – and tying his own franchise record with 237 total yards. He joined Thurman Thomas as the only players to record at least 500 rushing yards and 250 receiving yards in their team’s first five games of a season in NFL history. He had the longest run in Panthers’ franchise history – besting his franchise record for the longest touchdown run in team history that he had set two weeks ago with a 76-yarder in Arizona.
He’s on pace for 2,771 yards from scrimmage – the NFL record is 2509.
So when you’re looking to describe him, it’s easy to continue to say great/wonderful/excellent – but Ron Rivera is running out of words.
“You guys keep pulling from that thesaurus,” said Rivera after the game. “There is a whole bunch of words you can use to describe the way he plays and the amount of energy he plays with. That first drive and the one he finished that first drive with was pretty spectacular as well. It’s hard to put it into perspective. He’s a tremendous football player, he’s a hard worker, he’s a guy who just plays the game with such passion and he’s a heck of a guy.”
“We are very fortunate to have him on our football team.”
The Panthers are still trying to manage McCaffrey’s workload – he had taken only five snaps off in the four weeks before today’s game but had ceded a first-quarter carry to backup Reggie Bonnafon in Sunday’s game before cramping up in the fourth quarter – McCaffrey had the most touches in the league through four weeks by a wide margin with 109, including a career-high 37 last week in Houston.
“You feel it a little less when you win,” said McCaffrey. “At the end of the day, you’ve got to do what you can to take care of your body and get back healthy.”
Last season, he became the first player since Walter Payton to have over 50 yards rushing, receiving and passing in the same game – Sunday against Jacksonville, he became the first player since Jim Brown to have more than 175 yards from scrimmage in four of his team’s first five games.
He now leads the league in rushing attempts and yards, has the second-most rushing touchdowns and is in the top six in terms of yards per carry – in terms of receiving, he has the most receptions and receiving yards of NFC running backs through five weeks and is averaging 173.2 yards from scrimmage per game.
“He’s next level, man,” said Gerald McCoy. “He’s the MVP of the league right now – I’m just glad he’s on our side.”
