Matt Breida fought through injuries last season on his way to a team-leading 814 rushing yards with three touchdowns through 14 games and 13 starts. He added 27 receptions for 261 yards with two receiving touchdowns. Breida dealt with shoulder and ankle injuries and never found himself at 100 percent as the season progressed.
The 49ers now find themselves with an abundance of depth at running back. In addition to Breida, the team will be getting back Jerick McKinnon, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL. San Francisco also signed Tevin Coleman to a two-year deal.
After leading the team in rushing last year, Breida finds himself preparing to compete his way back up the depth chart. No matter where he finds himself at the start of the season — the first, second, or third back — Breida knows he will receive his opportunities in 2019.
Breida told Eric Branch this week that the 49ers plan to give all three running backs a significant amount of touches.
"All three of us are going to be used a lot," Breida said. "I don't want to give away any secrets, but we're all going to be used in the offense."
Healthy or not, Breida has proven he can be an effective weapon on offense. His 5.3 yards per carry ranked fourth in the NFL among running backs with at least 100 carries while his 10 carries of 20-or-more yards ranked sixth.
"I know what I did last year," Breida told Branch. "Everyone thinks I did a good job. But I know I can do better."
Breida has become a versatile weapon, too. He has developed as a legitimate receiving threat out of the backfield. Breida has seen his Pro Football Focus receiving grade improve from 51.0 during his rookie year to 90.1 last season, which was the best among running backs. He had six drops in 2017 but none in 2018.
In March, Breida shared his excitement about the 49ers' future.
"It's very bright," Breida told KNBR. "I think most people only see that during the season we were down to our third-string guys and we're still getting wins. I feel like as long as we stay healthy, and we do the right things, the sky's the limit for us.
"We're going to do great things. We're going to get championships. But like I said, we've got to put in the hard work first to get there."
Click here to read Branch's full feature about Breida.
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