The San Francisco 49ers were heavily scrutinized for their numerous reaches throughout the 2026 NFL Draft, but none drew as much criticism than the third-round selection of Indiana running back Kaelon Black, a player most saw as someone who'd be available well into day three.
While rookie draftees are no strangers to conjecture, given how much attention is heaped upon them throughout the draft process, Black's case is certainly unique in light of just how much the Niners' class has been called out in general.
And he's not obvious to the noise.
Speaking with Chase Senior of Chat Sports (h/t David Bonilla of 49ers Webzone), Black elaborated on how he's handling the criticism and how he plans to use it to his advantage.
"It makes me want to go harder," Black told Senior. "I've got to prove [head coach Kyle Shanahan] right. I'd be lying if I said I haven't seen the backlash that he's been getting for the pick, but we just stay the course, we stay focused, and we're going to keep moving and try to prove him right."
Shanahan, too, has received criticism for placing a grade on Black (and others) much higher than the consensus.
Things aren't made better by the Niners' previous third-round failures at running back, highlighted by quick flameouts from names like Trey Sermon and Tyrion Davis-Price, who quickly revealed why they wouldn't be integral parts of Shanahan's offense despite being drafted relatively early.
And both were viewed as major reaches at the time, too.
Nevertheless, Black is hoping to buck that trend. And he feels as if he has a great context in which that can happen.
"You got John Lynch, Kyle Shanahan, the mastermind," Black added. "And then, Christian McCaffrey, I can't wait to learn from him and George Kittle. It's just like, watching the film on all these guys, I just see how efficient the offense is ran, and I just can't wait to go out there and show what I could do."
Maybe a third time will finally be the charm.
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