49ers should move on from these 5 players in 2020
By Peter Panacy
No. 3: Running Back Tevin Coleman
2020 Projected Cap Hit: $4,900,000
Jerick McKinnon might stand a slightly better chance at hanging around with the 49ers in 2020 if the team elects to move on from another player Kyle Shanahan seems to like, running back Tevin Coleman.
Coleman, a Shanahan protege from their time together with the Atlanta Falcons, had himself an up-and-down year, which saw the 26-year-old runner finish third among the Niners trio of tailbacks in total rush yards (544).
Yet Shanahan still had faith in Coleman down the stretch, when the numbers weren’t exactly there, which ultimately led to Coleman starting 11 games and being named the starter in both the NFC Championship game and the Super Bowl.
But the situation always gets complicated when a player has zero in guaranteed money the following season, which is the precise case for Coleman entering year two of the two-year free-agent deal he signed with San Francisco in 2019.
Coleman has a $4.9 million cap hit for the upcoming season, but there’s zero in guaranteed money if cut.
This does give the team some flexibility in keeping him around into training camp. But if the 49ers bring aboard another running back, be it through free agency or the draft, Coleman will likely be in the same situation as McKinnon: a veteran player all but pushed out of a role.