The San Francisco 49ers are fortunate to have two versatile offensive players who are just as dangerous running the ball as they are catching it. However, one of those players, running back Christian McCaffrey, has yet to play this season due to being on injured reserve with bilateral Achilles tendinitis.
In McCaffrey's absence, running back Jordan Mason has stepped up, leading the team with 447 rushing yards and three touchdowns over four games. Wide receiver Deebo Samuel has also contributed to the ground game, carrying the ball 12 times for 27 yards and a rushing touchdown. Although his 2.3 yards per carry are below his usual averages, opposing defenses still have to account for Samuel whenever he gets the handoff since he is so challenging to bring down.
On Wednesday, head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about the difference in play-calling when McCaffrey is in the backfield versus Samuel.
"It's a little different," Shanahan admitted. "Just certain things—Deebo is a wide receiver, and Christian is a running back. Those guys are somewhat interchangeable. They can do a lot of things the other can do, but not everything. I don't want to go through those specifically, but it's not everything."
Mason spent the offseason working on his pass-catching abilities, investing in a $3,000 JUGS machine. While he has just six catches for 57 yards so far, Shanahan believes the running back can also become a dangerous receiving threat.
"It started showing up the most last year, I thought," Shanahan said. "I think when Christian got here his first year, just Jordan, Elijah [Mitchell], all the backs, just watching him, how he was out of the backfield, all the stuff that he started to get because of that, I think all those guys were just a little more deliberate in that stuff in the offseason, and they all came back better last year. It showed a ton. Christian was just always available last year.
"And this year, they did the same thing working, and JP's (Mason) gotten his opportunity, and it's really paid off."