Running Back Craze: Fournette, Kamara, and the 49ers - What You Need to Know
Leonard Fournette and Alvin Kamara.
Those are two of the hottest names floating around the NFL right now. Fournette was released earlier this week by the Jaguars, while Kamara is disgruntled by the lack of a contract extension with the Saints. In return, the team is reportedly open to trading Kamara, if no extension could be agreed upon.
It is unlikely that either Fournette or Kamara land in San Francisco. However, if Kyle Shanahan has his heart set on adding either player, don’t be surprised if the 49ers make a move. The 49ers philosophy is they’re always looking to get better, and if the front office feels like Fournette or Kamara makes them better, anything is possible -- but only at the right price.
Let’s examine the background on both Fournette and Kamara:
| <strong>Leonard Fournette</strong> | <strong>Alvin Kamara </strong> |
|---|---|
Draft: 2017 - RD 1 - Pick No. 4 Height: 6’ Weight: 240 40-Yard Dash: 4.51 Rushing Stats (three year average): 222 attempts - 877 yards - 5.67 TDs Receiving Stats (three year average): 44.67 catches - 336.3 yards - 0.67 TDs Best Rushing Season (2017): 268 attempts - 1,040 yards - 9 TDs Best Receiving Season (2019): 76 catches - 522 yards - 0 TDs Awards: N/A | Draft: 2017 - RD 3 - Pick No. 67 Height: 5’10” Weight: 214 40-Yard Dash: 4.56 Rushing Stats (three year average): 161.67 attempts - 802.67 yards - 9 TDs Receiving Stats (three year average): 81 catches - 689.33 yards - 3.33 TDs Best Rushing Season (2018): 194 attempts - 883 yards - 14 TDs Best Receiving Season (2017): 81 catches - 826 yards - 5 TDs Awards: Offensive Rookie of the Year (2017) Second-Team All-Pro (2017) Pro Bowl (2017 - 2019) |
How would each player fit with the 49ers?
Fournette
Fournette possesses a combination of both power and speed. However, he averaged an abysmal 3.95 yards per carry over the course of his three years in Jacksonville. That does not even rank within the top 100 of running backs during that same time frame. On the other hand, Fournette does have a career long run of 90 yards, which is a testament to his deceptive straight-line speed.
Fournette would immediately become the 49ers’ goal-line back, which was a role served by Jeff Wilson last season. There is not a bruising running back on the team, but Fournette would certainly change that.
Through three seasons, Fournette has had an extremely heavy workload. His 666 carries lead the NFL, since he entered the league in 2017. Joining a committee of running backs on a championship caliber team may be within Fournette’s best interest, as it would keep his body fresh for the coming years. And of course, he’d have the opportunity to compete for a Super Bowl.
A concern with Fournette is why is he so unwanted? The Jaguars outright cut their fourth overall pick from just three years ago, and head coach Doug Marrone said they couldn’t get anything in return from him.
Fournette may just simply not be a pleasant person to be around. But if there is one locker room that could turn someone’s attitude around, it's the 49ers’.
Kamara
Shanahan and Kamara are a match made in heaven. There aren’t too many other running backs out there that fit Shanahan’s offense to the T the way that Kamara does.
Kamara is exactly what George Kittle, Deebo Samuel and Kyle Juszczyk are -- an offensive weapon. Like the players above, Kamara breaks down the walls of playing a traditional position. He can be deployed all over the field, and used in a plethora of ways.
Over the last three seasons, Kamara has the fourth most yards from scrimmage among all running backs.
- McCaffrey - 926 touches - 5,443 yards
- Elliot - 1,004 touches - 5,030 yards
- Gurley - 912 touches - 4,988 yards
- Kamara - 728 touches - 4,476
His 6.14 yards per touch is a significantly higher amount, than all of the aforementioned backs. Kamara is a jack-of-all-trades, who’d thrive in Shanahan’s system.
Reviewing the 49ers’ current running back situation:
The 49ers currently have five running backs worth mentioning on their roster: Raheem Mostert, Tevin Coleman, Jerick McKinnon, Jeff Wilson and JaMycal Hasty. These five running backs, regardless of which make the final 53-man roster, all compliment each other extremely well.
It is a great group to have for the upcoming season, but there are concerns looking beyond 2020. For starters, the 49ers have a rather old group of backs. Coleman and McKinnon are both 27, while Mostert is 28. The younger running backs, Wilson and Hasty, don’t exactly possess the same talent as the others.
At the end of the season, Coleman and McKinnon will both be free agents, and their combined cap hit of nearly $8 million will be coming off the books. Running backs come and go, and it seems likely the team will need to find another back to pair with Mostert come 2021.
When Mostert’s contract is up in 2022, he’ll be 30. The 49ers don’t need to worry about finding their running back of the future just yet. But it should start to enter the back of the front office’s mind at the end of the year.
How could the 49ers acquire Fournette or Kamara?
Fournette: As of yesterday, Fournette cleared waivers and is now a free agent. He is free to sign with any team, at his own discretion.
Kamara: Kamara is still under contract with the Saints, and would need to be traded for.
Which is more likely? Neither. But if I had to choose one, it would be Fournette signing a one-year deal with the team.
It does not make sense for the team to go after Kamara right now for two reasons:
1- After the Trent Williams trade, they are extremely limited on draft capital. They are looking at only two picks in the top 100 of the upcoming draft.
2- If you trade for him, you have to pay him. The floor for Kamara’s next contract will likely be Joe Mixon’s four-year, $48 million deal, while the ceiling is Christian McCaffrey’s four-year, $64 million deal. That’s too much money to dish out for a cap-strapped team. But again, if Shanahan wants Kamara, I’m sure they could make it work. He's only owed $2.1 million this season, which would fit under this year's cap.
Could the 49ers spend big money on a running back again?
The short answer, yes. Of course they could. However it won’t be easy. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL salary cap is as tricky as ever. John Lynch said the team was planning on the 2021 cap being in the $215 million-220 million range, but it could be as low as $175 million.
I say the 49ers could spend big money on a running back again, because if Shanahan loves a back on the market, there is no reason to believe they wouldn’t sign him. They gave McKinnon a massive contract back in 2018, and Coleman received a respectable two-year, $8 million contract last offseason.
I don’t believe Shanahan and Lynch would be scared off from adding an elite offensive weapon, like Kamara, in free agency (set for March 2021), just because they had a horrific signing at the position with McKinnon.
Shanahan knows running backs will come and go in and out of his system, but certain ones belong for an extended amount of time. If he had his own Kamara, you bet he'd lock him up.
Should the 49ers spend big money on a running back again?
The short answer, no. Running back is not a premium position in the NFL, and the 49ers have already shown they could be successful without an elite running back. It’s rather funny - the running backs the team has actually cashed out haven’t produced nearly to the same extent as the bargain-buy running backs, who have been putting in the majority of the work.
Backfield finds like Mostert and Matt Breida have very sneakily been a saving grace of the franchise, and there may be more to come. Undrafted backs Wilson and Hasty both have potential, and could start producing this upcoming season at one point or another.
Luck could certainly run out for Shanahan and Lynch, in regards to finding all this late-round talent. But at the moment there is no reason to believe it should. They are good at finding quality talent deep in and even after the draft. Especially at running back.
The backfield aside, there are too many in-house free agents set to hit the market at the end of the year, to be spending money on a big name running back. With George Kittle locked up, Trent Williams is the next priority to extend. Followed by players like Kyle Juszczyk, K'Waun Williams, Richard Sherman, and Jaquiski Tartt.
Kamara is a lot more of a luxury than a necessity. Unfortunately for the 49ers, they don’t have the luxury to make a move for the luxurious Kamara.
Sigh.
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