Stanford star running back Christian McCaffrey was held in check during a loss on the road to the Washington Huskies on Friday night…
It feels like this is notable because I can’t recall it ever happening before, but Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey was held to his lowest total yards from scrimmage (79 rushing & receiving) since he became a full time starter in 2015.
The Washington Huskies should be proud.
Washington is really the bigger story here, as they have now improved to 5-0 and look like one of the best teams in the country (already ranked 10th nationally), but McCaffrey’s struggles have been few and far between in recent years.
To limit him offensively is an incredible accomplishment for any team, and Washington has apparently got it figured out. Of course, when it rains, it pours. This is a statistic I was unaware of in regards to McCaffrey:
Christian McCaffrey has still never scored a TD in a road game.
— ESPN (@espn) October 1, 2016
The dominant Washington D held him to just 49 yards on the ground tonight. pic.twitter.com/cbll6aDREO
There is a direct correlation this season between McCaffrey’s ability to break off big plays and his yards prior to contact. He averaged six yards per carry a year ago, and is averaging just over five this year. It’s not a huge difference, but this is a pretty revealing number for him:
Christian McCaffrey yards before contact per rush:
— Steve Palazzolo (@PFF_Steve) October 1, 2016
2015: 3.4
2016: 1.8
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It’s not that McCaffrey isn’t as elusive as he once was, but the offensive line isn’t paving gigantic holes for him like they were much of the time last year.
McCaffrey is still an outstanding player, and no one is questioning that. However, it’s apparent that things aren’t as ideal around him as they were last year and obviously the Washington Huskies are really good.
Stanford also lost Kevin Hogan, who had developed into a really solid quarterback for this scheme. Their passing game just hasn’t opened up as much this year to help allow for McCaffrey to do the things that make him so special.
It’s not a foregone conclusion that McCaffrey is now out of the Heisman race or anything, but this was a pretty revealing step back and a clear sign that things need to turn around for him, especially in road games against top competition.