One of the hallmarks of Kyle Shanahan’s 49ers clubs was the ability to piece together a backfield without unloading big-time draft capital or money at running back. That got turned on its head in mid-October last season when San Francisco unloaded a quartet of draft picks to acquire RB Christian McCaffrey. Now the 49ers have a clear RB1. Whether they’re satisfied with the rest of the roster remains to be seen.
Typically a depth chart like the one the team will roll out at running back is reason to believe no major changes are coming, but it’s not beyond Shanahan and the front office to look for ways to improve at a spot that will be crucial to the development of whichever quarterback lines up under center in Week 1.
Let’s take a look at the 49ers’ backfield in the second installment of our offseason preview: