The San Francisco 49ers are looking at their options. According to ESPN's Field Yates, the team worked out the following four running backs.
- Duke Johnson
- Brian Hill
- Jeremy McNichols
- Jason Huntley
With Elijah Mitchell out due to injury, the 49ers worked out four backs:
- Duke Johnson
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) August 7, 2023
- Brian Hill
- Jeremy McNichols
- Jason Huntley
Two of these running backs, Hill and McNichols, have spent time with the 49ers before. Hill appeared in three games with the 49ers in 2021, playing 46 snaps on special teams. McNichols appeared in two games with San Francisco as a rookie in 2017, playing 26 snaps on special teams.
The 49ers are preparing for their first preseason game, a Sunday road matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders. Elijah Mitchell is still working through an abductor strain and isn't expected to play.
Christian McCaffrey may also be unlikely to see any action. On Monday, head coach Kyle Shanahan hinted to reporters that his starters are unlikely to play against the Raiders. The two teams will hold joint practices on Thursday and Friday.
"Usually, when we go scrimmage against guys, I rarely play our starters (in the game)," Shanahan said. "That's usually my plan going into it because I'm a little more into the practices than the games. But I've changed my mind a couple of times, too, based off how those practices go. Usually, that's the plan, but we'll see how these practices go."
That could mean an increased workload for Ty Davis-Price, Jordan Mason, Ronald Awatt, and Khalan Laborn. If something happened to one of those backs this week, or if the Niners opt to hold one out of the game, it might make sense to add a running back for Sunday's game.
