Tag: Elijah Mitchell injury

Should you handcuff San Francisco 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey?

Here’s how you should approach San Fran RBs in fantasy leagues.

The San Francisco 49ers transformed their franchise prior to the trade deadline in 2022 with a blockbuster deal to acquire Christian McCaffrey. After mixing and matching running backs for years, McCaffrey has brought stability to the 49ers’ running game since his arrival.

In 2023, McCaffrey became the first 49ers running back since Frank Gore in 2014 to rush for more than 1,000 yards. He authored a dominant season that put him in the MVP conversation and earned his way to the consensus top pick in fantasy drafts. With the ultimate investment that comes with the first overall pick, in many cases fantasy managers opt to use their last running back selection on the No. 1 guy’s backup. In San Francisco, that’s a dicey option.

This situation is especially importing given a calf injury has McCaffrey, fantasy’s consensus top pick, set to miss the entire preseason.

The most obvious choice would be fourth-year man Elijah Mitchell. In his 2021 rookie season, Mitchell ran for 963 yards in 11 games. But he has been all but invisible since Run CMC arrived. In hindsight, Mitchell’s inability to stay healthy helped force the 49ers’ hand to make the McCaffrey trade. In three seasons, the 49ers played 51 total games. Of those, Mitchell was available for only 27 of them.

Because of the lack of confidence that Mitchell can stay healthy, the 49ers need a Plan C option. Jordan Mason was an undrafted free agent in 2022 and has kept a roster spot by playing special teams and finishing off lopsided wins. However, in two seasons, he has 83 carries for 464 yards and four touchdowns

The wild card is rookie Isaac Guerendo. Despite turning 24 in June after spending five injury-filled seasons at Wisconsin before transferring Louisville last season, Guerendo rushed 132 times for 810 yards, caught 22 passes for 234 yards and scored 11 touchdowns in part-time duty a year ago. However, what makes him somebody to keep an eye on is his 4.33-second 40 time at the combine that vaulted him to being drafted early on Day 3. If the 49ers offense wants to operate the same as it does with McCaffrey is he’s down, Guerendo may be the most similarly explosive player.

Fantasy football outlook

Most teams have a clear handcuff option in the event their primary back goes down. The 49ers don’t, in part because they constantly dealt with injuries and timeshare changes before McCaffrey arrived.

At one point, their primary rusher was Deebo Samuel, due to a rash of injuries. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk, while sparsely used in the offense, could step up and be a goal-line sniper. The Niners are equipped to go pass-happy in a given week to make up for McCaffrey being out.

Today, it’s even murkier due to Mitchell and Guerendo each battling hamstring injuries. It’s tough for a rookie to unseat a veteran and nearly impossible if the former can’t stay healthy. Mitchell is expected to miss roughly a week of practice, whereas Guerendo is considered week to week after getting hurt during the first practice of camp. As a result, veteran Matt Breida was added to the roster.

For those who draft McCaffrey, Mitchell should be the handcuff, and his RB5 ADP ranking puts him in a position that it wouldn’t be a reach. The reason for that recommendation comes from the largely unremembered, meaningless final six quarters of the 49ers’ regular season. McCaffrey sat for that period with playoff positioning locked up, and Mitchell was given a chance to prove himself. He responded with 31 carries for 132 yards and two touchdowns.

Guerendo is not entirely worthless but has lost valuable practice time and will need Mitchell to miss game action before he warrants a roster spot.

Fantasy football injury outlook: RB Elijah Mitchell, 49ers

After breakout rookie showing, will Mitchell overcome offseason knee surgery?

When fantasy football owners looked at the San Francisco 49ers’ draft haul in 2021, two names stood out: quarterback Trey Lance and running back Trey Sermon. The team’s first- and third-round choices, respectively, would ultimately contribute sparingly. Instead, it would be San Francisco’s final selection who delivered for fantasy owners in the form of sixth-round pick Elijah Mitchell, the team leader in carries (207), rushing yards (963), and rushing touchdowns (6).

That he accomplished all of that while appearing in just 11 of 17 games makes it even more impressive, though it also lays the foundation for this piece as he missed time dealing with shoulder, rib, hand, head, and knee injuries — at least his ankles went unscathed. The knee injury was the most serious, and the 24-year-old opted to undergo a cleanup procedure on it following the season, though the hope is he’ll be ready to roll full speed by training camp.

For his part, Mitchell recognizes he wasn’t durable enough as a rookie, and he has reportedly been spending the offseason trying to bulk up to 215 pounds to better handle the rigors of life in the NFL (he weighed 201 pounds at the 2021 NF Scouting Combine). Whether adding size will act as a panacea for the durability issues is to be determined, as is whether that bulk will affect the speed that was his most desirable trait coming out of Louisiana.

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Perhaps of greater concern is the disposable nature of running backs under head coach Kyle Shanahan. Consider this, in Shanahan’s five seasons on the job in San Francisco, the 49ers have had five different leading rushers: Carlos Hyde (2017), Matt Breida (2018), Raheem Mostert (2019), Jeff Wilson (2020), and Mitchell (2021). That’s enough time to be considered a trend, and it’s one that doesn’t bode well for a second-year back who had trouble staying on the field.

There’s no shortage of options in the backfield, either. That includes rookie Tyrion Davis-Price, a third-round pick out of LSU who boasts the type of speed/agility combination that Shanahan covets. Wilson, who finished third on the team in rushing last year, and Sermon, who struggled as a rookie but clearly has talent, are also options.

In addition, wide receiver Deebo Samuel became more and more involved in the running game as the season wore on, finishing second on the club in rushing yards (365) while averaging 6.2 per attempt. Granted, there are contract issues and a trade demand to work out with Samuel, but until Week 1 arrives without him in a 49ers uniform that’s just smoke. Working Mitchell’s favor is Samuel’s reported disinterest in playing running back again, so tuck that thought away as a potential upside factor.

Areas of concern that must be addressed: The 49ers lost borderline Hall of Famer center Alex Mack to retirement this offseason, and Pro Bowl guard Laken Tomlinson — who is a beast in the running game — went to the New York Jets via free agency. Lance will likely start for the Niners, which means his rushing prowess is bound to steal looks from Mitchell, especially in the red zone.

Fantasy football outlook

As of today, Mitchell is the top back to own in San Francisco’s crowded backfield, which is not a ringing endorsement given his questionable durability, Shanahan’s view on the position, Lance’s presence, OL concerns, and the team’s proven ability to run the ball effectively no matter who’s carrying the rock. Consider Mitchell a quality RB3 with elevated risk potential.