San Francisco 49ers: 2019 ‘State of the Franchise’ (running backs)
Niner Noise continues it’s ‘State of the Franchise’ series with a look at the running back situation for the San Francisco 49ers as the team welcomes a key addition to a talented backfield this season.
If there was ever a roster that was built for a running-back-by-committee approach, it would be for the San Francisco 49ers.
The team boasts several weapons at the position, and head coach Kyle Shanahan must be chomping at the bit with how to feature them all in the new “positionless offense” for this season.
In the “State of the Franchise” series, we look at the current state of the 2019 roster as the 49ers get closer to training camp, position by position.
We won’t be doing full player profiles, for those we recommend taking a look at the “Who Is?” series by Niner Noise.
2019 State of the Franchise: Running backs
Kyle Juszczyk
Does Kyle Juszczyk count? He does now because nobody wants to read the article with only one fullback to talk about.
Juszczyk is one of the best in the league at fullback. He’s made a Pro Bowl every season for the past three years, and is a mismatch in the passing game.
I’m going out on a limb to say he’s going to be fine.
Matt Breida
Matt Breida has been injured for a good portion of his career with the 49ers, but his talent makes him a steal as a former undrafted free agent out of Georgia Southern.
Breida is ridiculously talented with the ability to run for six points at any stage, so being kept fresh with the amount of depth around him is going to help a lot.
Tevin Coleman
The newest member of the 49ers running back corps, Tevin Coleman, comes as a player with familiarity with Shanahan and an ability to become the leader of the team’s running backs.
Coming over from the Atlanta Falcons on a two-year, $10 million dollar deal, Coleman is a good runner and receiver of the football and has the advantage of being the only potential lead back to practice so far.
Jerick McKinnon
How does Jerick McKinnon fit into this rotation? That’ll be the big question as he makes his return from a torn ACL.
Last season, the plan was to build the running game around him, but this season that plan has obviously planned. McKinnon may be the weakest runner, but he is the strongest receiver of the group.
Expect to see him on third downs a lot.
Raheem Mostert
Raheem Mostert looks to be on the outside, looking in with the talent around him, but he should still remain on the roster due to his special teams ability.
That ability may be what makes him the fourth running back on the roster.
Austin Walter
The undrafted free agent of the group. Austin Walter comes from Rice and his height (5-foot-8) plus his ability to run and catch the football could draw some comparisons to Breida with their undrafted free-agent status.
It would be very unlikely to see him on the roster, however.
Jeff Wilson
Jeff Wilson showed, in his short tenure as the 49ers lead running back, he can play in this league. But the addition of Coleman, plus Mostert’s special team abilities, may leave Wilson on the wrong side of the roster bubble.
Prediction
This is a hard one to predict because the 49ers probably won’t keep four running backs active on game day, yet Mostert looks a certainty to suit up due to his special team abilities.
Coleman and Breida look like they could be the leading candidates to take a big role into the season, while McKinnon could be a cut candidate if he struggles during the preseason. However it may be too early for the 49ers to cut him.
Mostert looks safe due to his aforementioned special teams ability. Count him as a lock.
Walter looks destined to be just a training camp body unless he can blow everyone away and maybe get a spot on the practice squad, while Wilson will be fighting for his 49ers life in a stacked position.
Next. San Francisco 49ers: 2019 ‘State of the Franchise’ (quarterbacks). dark
Juszczyk isn’t going anywhere.
It’s going to be a very intense battle when training camp begins next month.