Kaelon Black

Black must beat out Jordan James — a 2025 5th-round pick entering his second year — for the RB2 role in SF. James has a year of scheme familiarity and Shanahan's trust, meaning Black isn't guaranteed meaningful touches even if McCaffrey's workload is managed down.

Black opens camp as RB3 behind McCaffrey and Jordan James, with Isaac Guerendo and Patrick Taylor also in the room. Standalone fantasy value is near-zero unless McCaffrey misses time.

Black posted only 12 targets across two seasons at Indiana and his snap rate never exceeded 45% in college. In Shanahan's pass-heavy offense, a back without receiving utility is capped to early-down carries, materially limiting his floor and weekly relevance.

Black was not invited to the NFL Combine and received a 5.69 grade from NFL.com — projecting him as a bottom-of-roster candidate — before the 49ers took him at pick 90. Multiple analysts flagged the selection as a reach, and SF's recent track record developing mid-round RBs is poor.

At 24 years old as a rookie after six collegiate seasons at James Madison and Indiana, Black enters the NFL on the older end for the position, compressing his dynasty window and limiting the long-term age-curve upside dynasty managers typically prize in RB prospects.

McCaffrey turns 30 in June 2026, is coming off a career-high 413 touches, and missed most of 2024 with Achilles/knee injuries. Shanahan explicitly said the team needs 'more than one starter' and intends to reduce McCaffrey's workload — creating a credible near-term handoff window for whichever back wins the RB2 role.

Black averaged 5.5 YPC on zone runs in college versus 4.7 on gap concepts, and Shanahan specifically cited this fit as a key driver of the pick. SF runs the NFL's premier zone-blocking system — if Black earns starter-level touches here, the production environment is elite.

Brian Robinson Jr. departed for Atlanta in free agency, leaving only Jordan James between Black and the RB2 role. The competition for backup touches is narrower than it appeared pre-draft, giving Black a cleaner path to carving out a role in camp.