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The 49ers on Saturday officially activated running back Elijah Mitchell off of IR, making him available for their season finale Sunday against the Cardinals at Levi’s Stadium.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Friday indicated this was the plan with Mitchell. The announcement from the team makes it official.
This is the second time this season Mitchell has come off IR after a sprained MCL. His first one came in Week 1 and he wound up missing the next eight weeks (including the Bye). This time the injury occurred in his opposite knee during Week 12 and he missed five weeks.
Mitchell’s playing time would be interesting to watch considering his two short spurts of availability have ended with a trip to IR. He’s their best running back next to Christian McCaffrey and having him available for the playoffs would likely be the priority.
However, after five weeks off, it would make sense for the 49ers to give him at least a little action before throwing him into a postseason game.
Mitchell this season has 224 yards on 40 carries in four games. His return likely means one of Jordan Mason or Tyrion Davis-Price are inactive Sunday. That’s typically meant Davis-Price is down because of what Mason offers on special teams.
San Francisco also elevated cornerback Janoris Jenkins and defensive lineman Michael Dwumfour from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.
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