Why the 49ers Should Trade Elijah Mitchell

Sorry, Elijah.

Sorry, Elijah. It's time for a fresh start somewhere else.

The 49ers need to trade Elijah Mitchell. Doing so would be best for him and for the team.

Mitchell used to be the 49ers' starting running back. He rushed for nearly 1,000 yards his rookie year in 2021 after Raheem Mostert went down with a knee injury during the first game of the season. You could argue that Mitchell saved the 49ers season -- he started 10 games and rushed more than 200 times that year. It's hard to imagine the 49ers making the playoffs without him, considering they missed the playoffs without him in 2020 when he was still in college.

But the 49ers ran him into the ground that season -- his body wasn't ready for the pounding he would take as a bell-cow running back in the NFL. And so ever since that season, he has been mostly ineffective.

In 2023, Mitchell averaged just 3.7 yards per carry and a mere 2.3 yards per catch. In the playoffs, he averaged a minuscule 2.5 yards per carry and caught no passes. He was stuck in the mud. He has no explosion anymore.

If the 49ers can get a seventh-round pick in 2025 for Mitchell, they should take it. He's worth nothing to them anymore. They have Christian McCaffrey, arguably the best running back in the NFL, plus they have Jordan Mason, who averaged 5.2 yards per carry last season.

Mason should be the 49ers backup running back, and Mitchell should be a backup somewhere else.