The 49ers backfield in 2021 operated differently than it had in the past under head coach Kyle Shanahan. After four seasons of mixing in a slew of different ball carriers, rookie sixth-round pick Elijah Mitchell emerged last season as the team’s No. 1 running back. When he was healthy it was rare another RB logged a carry.
A workhorse back doesn’t mean depth isn’t important though, and San Francisco’s depth lacks pretty badly going into the offseason.
Mitchell will be back on Year 2 of his rookie deal and third-down back JaMycal Hasty is an exclusive rights free agent so he’ll all but certainly be back in a 49ers uniform. 2021 third-round pick Trey Sermon will also be back and in the mix to carve out the RB2 job. Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson Jr. and Trenton Cannon are all unrestricted free agents leaving San Francisco’s backfield very thin.
Mostert and Wilson could definitely be free agency targets for the 49ers if they’re looking for backfield depth, and Cannon is an option for his special teams contributions. Let’s look at the rest of the free agency class to see what other players might make sense in the 49ers’ RB room, keeping in mind the club isn’t likely to shell out a ton of money at the position:
