The 49ers will have a new running back heading into Week 2 and Kyle Shanahan has an idea on how to decide who it will be.
with Elijah Mitchell They stay out of harm’s way for about two months., Jeff Wilson Jr., will compete for the lead-back role going forward with rookies Ty Davis-Price and Jordan Mason. The club signed a former Indianapolis Colts ball carrier Marlon Mack to their practice squad. The head coach explained that all backs will compete for the job this week.
“That’s pretty much what it was last week,” Shanahan said Wednesday. We will feel for them in these three days and we will go into the game with hot hands.
Wilson Jr. is the obvious choice to start Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks. The veteran has more experience in Shanahan’s system, but the head coach likes what he’s seen from his two starters.
“Both, I think, are very similar,” Shanahan said on Wednesday. “They don’t mess up, they come down. There are two styles that we like and love, but there’s more to us than just playing football.
Shanahan explained that the responsibilities of running backs in the system overlap. Not only should the offensive line not hesitate to hit the holes it creates, but they should make calls from their role on special teams to pass defenses.
It’s just as important as what a running back does when the ball isn’t in his hands. For Shanahan’s offense to be successful, all eleven players on the field must do their part. Add in a wide receiver like Debo Samuels who acts as a running back and you have a higher margin of error.
“Everybody works on it, but it’s not easy,” Shanahan said. “When you get DeBon in and out of position, and back to receiver, and back, there’s a lot that goes into it.
“Even people who know it well screw it up, so it’s not easy. But the pressure is on those people to vote [it] It escalated faster than they had originally planned.
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There’s nothing like being thrown into the fire and that’s what Mason and Davies-Price are likely to experience this Sunday at Levi’s Stadium.