Elijah Mitchell Injury Places Pressure On San Francisco 49ers’ Rookie Running Backs

Elijah Mitchell was dealt another blow in a frustrating season for the San Francisco 49ers running back with the news he would miss six to eight weeks because of a knee injury.

Mitchell was the 49ers’ leading rusher as a rookie last season but suffered an MCL sprain in Week 1 of this campaign. He returned to action in San Francisco’s Week 10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers and, on a team that acquired former All-Pro Christian McCaffrey last month, looked like the best runner in the 49er backfield in that victory and in the second half of the Week 11 blowout of the Arizona Cardinals in Mexico City.

Indeed, across those two games and the Week 12 meeting with the New Orleans Saints in which he sprained the MCL in his other knee, Mitchell racked up 183 yards on the ground at an average of 5.38 yards per carry.

He looked set to form a running back tandem with McCaffrey that would potentially be crucial to San Francisco’s hopes of realising their Super Bowl ambitions for this season. Instead, Mitchell now appears unlikely to return until the Wild Card round of the playoffs at the earliest.

And, with McCaffrey dealing with what Kyle Shanahan, per ProFootballTalk, has described as “knee irritation”, the 49ers will now need to turn to at least one of two rookies to help them deliver efficient production on the ground down the stretch as the Niners attempt to secure their place in the postseason having improved to 7-4 by shutting out the Saints 13-0.

Rookie undrafted free agent Jordan Mason took some of the running workload late in that victory, rushing for the clinching first down late in the fourth quarter and serving as an effective hammer in the closing stages in finishing with 25 yards on five carries.

Mason caught the eye in the preseason with his burst and his physical running style, with many seeing the opportunity he may now have to make an impression as overdue following his performances in the exhibition schedule.

By contrast, Tyrion Davis-Price, a third-round pick out of LSU, received comparatively little buzz prior to the season. However, he too has the frame to produce punishing runs and also showed intriguing elusiveness and upside in pass protection during his collegiate career.

It remains to be seen which of that pair will get the lion’s share of the opportunities in a time-share with McCaffrey following the injury to Mitchell.

Regardless of whether it is Mason or Davis-Price, they will be under immediate pressure to deliver in a game where the 49ers will almost certainly require efficiency on offense as they host an explosive Miami Dolphins team led by former Niners offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel in Week 13.

Shanahan has invested heavily in the running back position during his time as San Francisco head coach, with the trade for a known commodity in McCaffrey illustrative of the hit and miss nature of those investments.

Mitchell was an undoubted hit for the Niners, but the loss of him for at least the remainder of the regular season means it is now time for one of Mason and Davis-Price to prove Shanahan was right to put his faith in their abilities.