Former 49ers running back Raheem Mostert shares his honest thoughts on Kyle Shanahan

Raheem Mostert is one of the best running backs in the league and his path to become one of the best started with the San Francisco 49ers. He was given an opportunity to start by head coach Kyle Shanahan in 2019 as the team made their run to the Super Bowl and he has not looked back since.

After bouncing around from team to team to begin his career, Mostert found a home with the 49ers. He was primarily a backup and special teams player his first few years with the team, but in 2019 he got his chance to start.

In a recent episode of Mostert’s podcast, he sat down with another former 49ers running back and his current teammate on the Miami Dolphins, Jeff Wilson Jr.

Mostert discussed his discussions with Shanahan which eventually led him to getting more reps in practice and becoming the starter.

Essentially, Mostert said that when Shanahan talked with him about a fumble he had, Mostert was candid in saying that he had the talent to do what Shanahan was asking him to do, but he needed more practice reps to be able to do it. 

Former 49ers running back Raheem Mostert shares his honest thoughts on Kyle Shanahan

Shanahan also called out the fact that Mostert’s sunny, smiling demeanor gave off the impression that maybe he was not serious enough to take on more responsibility in the backfield. 

Nonetheless, Shanahan listened to Mostert and began giving him more reps in practice. The rest is history as Mostert took the starting job and ran with it the rest of 2019, becoming the first player to have four touchdowns and over 200 rushing yards in an NFC Championship game that season as the 49ers crushed the Packers to advance to the Super Bowl. 

Unfortunately, injuries are what ended Mostert’s time in San Francisco. Yet, things have worked out for both sides as Mostert and the Miami Dolphins, despite their loss to the Chiefs in the first round of the playoffs on Saturday, have one of the more exciting offenses in football and should be a factor in the AFC going forward. And, of course, the 49ers wound up with Christian McCaffrey who has been a major boost for the 49ers offense.

Sometimes things truly do work out for the best for both sides. 

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