49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan had to wait until the preseason finale to get a look at rookie running back Elijah Mitchell in game action, but it seems like Mitchell showed Shanahan what he hoped to see.
Mitchell was impressive early in his first training camp after being selected in Round 6 of the 2021 NFL Draft out of the University of Louisiana. But a hip injury put him on the sidelines for the first two preseason games and left his status in question in terms of a roster spot. Mitchell began improving before the 49ers' second preseason game against the Los Angeles Chargers, then returned to practice in the days heading up to the preseason finale against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
Mitchell got in a solid workload during the 34-10 win over the Raiders and made his presence felt by rushing for 24 yards on six carries with two kick returns for 60 yards, including one that went for 45. He also had a tackle on special teams and lowered the boom on Raiders linebacker Max Richardson during one of his runs.
Elijah Mitchell just ran over the Raiders' defender 😲pic.twitter.com/yt5K8BOCDQ
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) August 29, 2021
Shanahan spoke after the game about Mitchell's performance and sounded pleased with what he saw.
"I thought he looked real good," Shanahan said. "He started out having a real good camp for us at the beginning of training camp. Then he's been out here I want to say the last two weeks. We knew this would be a big week for him. He was starting to feel better towards the end of LA. He had two-and-a-half real good days of practice, and we wanted to make sure to get him in the game. You never know about runners -- especially rookies and stuff -- until they get in a game. He looked the same way in the game that he has in practice, so I was real happy with Elijah."
Mitchell now finds himself right back in the thick of things at the running back position, where the 49ers will have a tough decision to make before 53-man roster cuts are due on Tuesday (4 p.m. ET). Raheem Mostert and third-round pick Trey Sermon are locks to get a spot, which leaves Mitchell competing with second-year back JaMycal Hasty and veteran Wayne Gallman. Mitchell certainly helped his cause on Sunday, but all of the running backs have shown over the past month that they are worthy of being on an NFL roster, and the 49ers most likely won't have room for all of them.
"It's real challenging," Shanahan said. "Every guy that you guys have seen out there ran like an NFL back. Those guys have done a great job. They've been great people throughout the whole thing. I know they're all pulling for each other too. They're definitely making our job harder."