The San Francisco 49ers may have finally hit on a third-round running back when they selected Indiana's Kaelon Black No. 90 overall pick in this year's draft.
Black looked strong in his two brief preseason appearances, and then backed it up with a regular-season debut where he logged a team-high 14 carries and matched starter Christian McCaffrey with 15 touches. He looks decisive and explosive with the ball in his hands and appears to have the chops to be a legitimate No. 2 RB behind McCaffrey.
His early performances reminded one 49ers veteran of a former undrafted running back who found a ton of success in San Francisco.
“He reminds me a little of JP (Jordan Mason) but with a little more juice," right tackle Colton McKivitz told NBC Sports Bay
Area's Matt Maiocco. "It’s nice to have a guy like that. He’ll learn some things. Hopefully, he’ll open his eyes and not run into me. But it’s exciting to have a guy like that.”
Mason burst on the scene in 2022 with 258 yards and one touchdown on 43 carries. His carries dipped to 40 in 2023 behind McCaffrey while churning out 206 yards and three touchdowns. Mason finally got a real shot to be the team's top back in 2024 when he logged 153 carries for 789 yards and three touchdowns while McCaffrey dealt with bilateral Achilles tendinitis.
The 49ers eventually traded Mason to the Minnesota Vikings when it was time for his salary to increase as a restricted free agent.
While Mason didn't stick around long-term, the comparison has to be an exciting one for the 49ers to consider, particularly since Black has shown to be an effective pass blocker and receiver who can be used in some of the ways McCaffrey can in the passing game. That wasn't true for Mason who had only 14 catches in 45 games with San Francisco.
Nuance and understanding of the 49ers' offense and NFL speed will eventually come for Black who couldn't stop running into his offensive linemen per Maiocco's story. Once he's able to do that and not slow himself down via his own teammates, we could see Black take off in a way no other RB has been able to in San Francisco while McCaffrey is on the field.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: RB Kaelon Black reminds veteran of former 49ers leading rusher
