Reasons for and against 49ers re-signing RB Raheem Mostert
By Peter Panacy
The 49ers will face a number of NFL free agency questions this offseason, and veteran running back Raheem Mostert is among those who could leave.
Veteran running back Raheem Mostert is one of 24 unrestricted free agents the San Francisco 49ers have entering 2022.
On paper, it doesn’t seem to make much sense to re-sign Mostert. At least not after he suffered a season-ending knee injury way back in Week 1, opening up the door for rookie runner Elijah Mitchell to take over as the Niners’ primary tailback and with great success.
Additionally, head coach Kyle Shanahan and running backs coach Bobby Turner have a history of identifying and deploying less-known tailbacks and turning them into relative household names, Mostert even being one of those during his storybook 2019 campaign that helped propel San Francisco to a Super Bowl appearance, one in which he had 952 all-purpose yards and 10 total touchdowns.
At the same time, though, there actually may be some reasons why retaining Mostert would have some merit.
According to Over the Cap, the 49ers have a projected $10.7 million in available cap space next season, a number that should jump up considerably if they move on from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo during the offseason, freeing up over $25 million extra the Niners could spend on either the open market or retaining key contributors.
Would Mostert fall into that category?
Considering how run-heavy Shanahan’s offense is, there is actually some concrete evidence as to why retaining Mostert might be a smart move for San Francisco in the immediate future.
Let’s explore both sides of the argument.