Kyle Shanahan and the San Francisco 49ers could be facing an issue at the running back position. And some might not like where they are headed.
Elijah Mitchell, the 49ers starting running back heading into the 2022 season, will be sidelined for around the next two months. After suffering a sprained MCL, Mitchell has been placed on injured reserve.
This left the 49ers backfield with a proven veteran in Jeff Wilson. And two rookie backs in Tyrion Davis-Price and Jordan Mason. Shanahan and the 49ers then added another veteran back in Marlon Mack, who is currently on the practice squad.
To combat the loss of Mitchell, many believed that Jeff Wilson would be elevated to starting duties. But according to Kyle Shanahan, this may not be the case.
During Shanahan's weekly press conference on Wednesday, he spoke about the current state of the running back room. He made it clear that there will be competition for the current starting job.
According to NBC 49ers beat writer Jennifer Lee Chan, Shanahan stated, “We will get a feel for them in these three days and we will go with the hot hand in the game.”
After the loss of Mitchell, fantasy owners ran to the waiver wire to pick up Wilson. But now it seems as if he will still be fighting to get onto the field.
Shanahan went on to talk about the two rookie running backs that the 49ers have. He stated, “They don’t mess around, they get downhill. Two types of styles that we need and what we like, but there’s a lot more to playing football with us than just running the ball.”
With comments such as this, Shanahan could have a plan in place for both of his young ball carriers. While it is still safe to imagine that Wilson will be the RB1, the 49ers could elect to go with a committee approach at the moment.
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