SANTA CLARA, Calif. — After San Francisco 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell returned to practice last week from a hamstring injury, his comeback encountered a significant obstacle Tuesday.
In a somewhat surprising move, the Niners placed Mitchell on the injured list on Tuesday afternoon and did not use any of their options for Mitchell's return, ruling him out for the rest of the season.
A source told ESPN on Tuesday night that Mitchell suffered another, even more serious hamstring injury this week. The injury is believed to have occurred during the team's practice on Monday, when Mitchell was in uniform participating in individual drills but was not involved in any team activities.
Mitchell's injury is the latest in a series of ailments that have prevented him from establishing himself as a top option in San Francisco's running game and could mean he plays his final game for the team.
This is the fourth and final year of Mitchell's rookie contract, making him an unrestricted free agent after the season. In the three previous seasons, Mitchell has only appeared in 27 games with 12 starts due to various injuries, including rib, finger, knee and shoulder problems.
As a rookie in 2021, Mitchell impressed with 963 yards and five touchdowns in 11 games after replacing the injured Raheem Mostert as the starter. But Mitchell only appeared in five games in 2022 when the Niners traded for McCaffrey, who had taken over the majority of the running back snaps since his arrival in October of that year.
In this year's training camp, Mitchell competed with Jordan Mason for the position of McCaffrey's main backup before suffering his first hamstring injury in early August.
In his previous two seasons, Mason averaged 5.6 yards per attempt with four touchdowns on 83 carries. Mason's improved versatility would have already put him in a position to replace Mitchell as McCaffrey's primary backup, but Mitchell's inability to stay on the field made that competition moot.
“He's been such a good runner since he got here,” Kyle Shanahan said of Mason after Friday's final game of the season against the Raiders. “I think his endurance has gotten better. I think his overall game, especially on special teams, has gotten a lot better.”
“He's been running well with the ball for some time now. He's also solid in his passing game.”
Mason was the Niners' top running back for most of training camp as McCaffrey battled a calf injury. In addition to McCaffrey and Mason, the Niners kept two other running backs – Patrick Taylor Jr. and rookie Isaac Guerendo – on their original 53-man roster.
