Who will win the San Francisco 49ers' third running back spot? Will it be special-teams standout Raheem Mostert? After all, head coach Kyle Shanahan values versatility. Then there is second-year running back Joe Williams.
Shanahan and running backs coach Bobby Turner fought hard to convince general manager John Lynch to take a flier on Williams in the fourth round. Even then, it still took a phone call between Lynch and the Utah Utes product to convince him.
After he was drafted, Williams was viewed as a potential replacement for Carlos Hyde, who was entering the final year of his rookie contract. Williams did not play during his rookie season and was placed on injured reserve with an ankle injury before the start of the season.
Cam Inman of Bay Area News Group joined the latest installment of the No Huddle Podcast to talk San Francisco 49ers football with Al Sacco and Zain Naqvi. Part of the discussion surrounded Williams, who is fighting for a roster spot with the 49ers. Could the second-year running back be part of the 53-man roster cut-down on September 1?
"If he does, it's only because he just dogs it the next couple of weeks," says Inman. "He's had a really good camp. He's made the most of his opportunities, I would say. He did fumble once a couple of days ago. You can't be doing that. But he's so quick guys.
"If he looks like he's hustling and in-tune, then okay, I'll give, but in spring, I saw him just at one point in practice, and he was kind of walking back to the huddle, and I'm like, 'You can't do that.' I mean, you're on red alert right now where everything you're doing body-language-wise, they're watching you.
"It's not just running. I don't know what goes on in the classroom so I can't comment on that, but I saw him on the practice field and was like, 'You've got to hustle better.'
"He's gotten that message now from not me but from coaches. It looks like he's come into camp with the mindset, 'I've got something to prove, and I want to be here,' which is great."
You can listen to the latest No Huddle Podcast episode below, from our dedicated podcast page, on iTunes, Google Play, or SoundCloud.
