49ers ‘Worst Offseason Move' Could Come Back to Haunt Them

The San Francisco 49ers made sure to address the wide receiver position during the offseason, giving quarterback Brock Purdy ample weapons after the team had lost several key targets in the past couple of years.

The 49ers entered the offseason needing to address the offensive line, defensive line, and secondary.

Running back should have been a little bit lower on the 49ers’ to-do list, as the team has All-Pro Christian McCaffrey in the backfield. San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan made a bold decision to take Indiana running back Kaelon Black in the third round, a draft pick that was considered a serious reach at the time.

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Bill Barnwell of ESPN considers the pick to be the worst offseason move the 49ers made this spring, especially considering the busts Shanahan has made at running back in the draft before.

“The 49ers have simply taken too many swings at this position, especially given the presence of Christian McCaffrey as one of the highest-paid backs in football at the lead role,” Barnwell wrote. The 49ers naturally hope and expect that Black, their third-round pick, won’t follow in the footsteps of Isaac Guerendo, Tyrion Davis-Price, Trey Sermon, and Joe Williams, all backs Shanahan added in the middle rounds of drafts before quickly losing interest.

“However, ESPN’s Jordan Reid had Black as the 177th-best prospect in the draft on his board, and ESPN’s Matt Miller placed Black at No. 226. Shanahan pounced on Black at pick No. 90. I’d give one of the league’s best coaches some benefit of the doubt with his running back evaluations, but that might not be warranted given the evidence.”

Given the needs the 49ers have on its veteran roster, the team can’t afford to have many misses in the draft on Day 1 and Day 2. The selection could come back to haunt the 49ers if weaknesses at other positions doom the team in the postseason.

If Black turns out to give San Francisco a boost in the running game, Shanahan will be forgiven, but the team could have found help at running back in free agency. Even then, the 49ers probably could have selected Black later in the draft, using the third-round pick on a position of need.

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This story was originally published May 28, 2026 at 9:31 AM.