49ers’ McCaffrey is ready to go as he feels his Achilles tendon issues are behind him

Christian McCaffrey took a few minutes to address reporters Friday for the first time since Sept. 12, which was the last time he spoke publicly before going on reserve due to Achilles tendonitis in both feet.

A transcript of what McCaffrey had to say as the 49ers (4-4) left to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-5) on Sunday:

Q: Can you take us on a journey through Germany?

McCaffrey: I keep all that stuff private. When you’re on IR and you’re hurt, you do whatever you can to get back. I feel good now and that’s all that matters.

Q: It was said that rest was an important part of your recovery. Would you agree with that?

McCaffrey: I wish it were that easy. It is a combination of many things that are involved. Our employees have done a fantastic job. The past eight weeks have been extremely unhappy for me. It’s very hard to be injured. It’s physically, mentally, emotionally tough. Especially when it’s not how you planned it and it wasn’t expected and some things just went wrong, but I feel great now and I’m ready to go.

Q: How did you get through that time?

McCaffrey: One day at a time. You just have to trust God and take it one day at a time. It can be dark sometimes, especially when it’s something like this and you feel like it’s… . . When you have to watch matches, you are physically in pain. I do my best not to let things like this happen and there is a lot involved. I think about football almost every day of my life. It consumes about 98 percent of my life. So if things don’t go well, it can be very difficult. All I know is that you realize how blessed and lucky you are when you’re on that field, so I’m happy to be back.

Q: Kyle Shanahan said using IR took the pressure off by giving it some time. Was it the same for you?

McCaffrey: I can say this – from John (Lynch) to Kyle, to Jed (York) and the entire training staff, the way they handled everything and the way they went about it was great. Sometimes you need people in your corner who can take care of you and maybe they know what’s best for you when there are times when you want to suck it up and do something that could be risky. They handled it, and the training staff and the strength staff, I’m really lucky.

Q: What was your mentality when you got back on the field to practice?

McCaffrey: Ah, just a lot of gratitude. Sometimes you assume you play this game for a living. It’s what you do, it’s what you train for, but when it’s taken away from you, even for a short time, you’ll appreciate every day you’re on the grass.

Q: Were you able to stay in the conference room and was it satisfying to see what Jordan (Mason) and Isaac (Guerendo) were able to do?

McCaffrey: I stayed as much as I could. If you are on IR, this is not necessary. Well, that’s necessary, but almost every hour of the day is spent getting healthy and not necessarily in the meetings. It’s a lot of treatment, a lot of prehab stuff, rehab, training, and so on. Sleeping, resting, you name it. But it was great to see what those guys have done and will continue to do. We have such a great room, I will put our guys against anyone. It’s no surprise to see what those guys have done when you have a guy like Bobby Turner as a coach. There is a standard in that room and the guys have done a great job and will continue to do a great job.

Q: Is there anything you need to add to your pregame routine because of these injuries?

McCaffrey: I changed quite a bit, yes. A lot of people have asked me, “What do you do for training?” And I’m done answering. I find out every day. All I know is that I have a good routine now and I feel good, and that’s all that matters.