San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers are in need of some running back depth after losing Elijah Mitchell to an MCL sprain, and they reportedly turned to a veteran.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the 49ers signed former Houston Texans running back Marlon Mack to their practice squad on Tuesday.

Mitchell is expected to miss the next two months, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan announced on Monday. He suffered the injury in the first half of Sunday's 19-10 loss to the Chicago Bears and didn't return to the game. It's the second straight year that he has injured his knee in the season opener.

Mack was signed by the Texans in April, but the team released him in September. He spent the first five years of his career with the Indianapolis Colts, who drafted him with a fourth-round pick in 2017.

The 26-year-old appeared in six games in 2021 and rushed for 101 yards with no touchdowns. He suffered a torn Achilles in Week 1 of the previous season that might have still affected him last year.

Mack enjoyed the best season of his career in 2019, rushing for a career-high 1,091 yards in 14 games while adding eight touchdowns on 247 carries. If he's able to stay healthy, he could earn a promotion from San Francisco's practice squad.

Fifth-year speedster Jeff Wilson Jr. will assume the lead back duties for the 49ers. However, his backups are rookies Jordan Mason and Tyrion Davis-Price. Adding an experienced running back like Mack could help improve the team's depth.

San Francisco will go for its first win of the season when it hosts the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

Former St. Louis Rams head coach Mike Martz wasn't impressed with what he saw from Trey Lance in Week 1.

In a video for The 33rd Team, Martz gave a sharply critical assessment of the San Francisco 49ers quarterback. He said Lance is "not a great passer" and "doesn't have good skills," adding he thinks Jimmy Garoppolo could be the new starter by Week 4.

Martz was an architect of the Rams' "Greatest Show on Turf" offense, first as the offensive coordinator and then as the head coach. The 71-year-old has a well-earned reputation as a guru on that side of the ball.

But his opinion of Lance feels unnecessarily harsh given the terrible conditions Sunday in Chicago. The steady rain made it tough to throw the ball, and the soggy field meant running the ball wasn't much easier.

Lance's final numbers (13-of-28 for 164 yards and one interception; 13 carries, 54 yards) aren't great, but it was tough to expect better under the circumstances.

The San Francisco 49ers are willing to engage in discussions centered around a Jimmy Garoppolo trade.

Asked about whether he'd entertain sending Garoppolo to the Dallas Cowboys, head coach Kyle Shanahan reiterated the franchise's general stance.

"Just like all players, we’ll listen to anybody on anything," he told reporters. "That never changes for any player or coach."

ESPN's Todd Archer reported Monday that Cowboys star Dak Prescott underwent thumb surgery and is expected to miss six to eight weeks.

With Cooper Rush now deputized as the starting quarterback for the next two months, many immediately thought a move for Garoppolo presented Dallas with a straightforward solution.

However, Shanahan's comments don't necessarily signal the extent of San Francisco's appetite for a swap.

The Niners could've traded Garoppolo at any point in the offseason and declined to do so. They also could've waived him ahead of Week 1 and saved a lot of money in the process.

Instead, the 30-year-old renegotiated his contract to make $6.5 million guaranteed and count for just under $14 million against the salary cap.

Now, Shanahan and general manager John Lynch hold almost all of the cards.

Even if they have no plans to bench Trey Lance at any point this year, Garoppolo is a great insurance policy in the event Lance gets hurt. If he were to go, the 49ers would be looking at seventh-round draft pick Brock Purdy as the backup QB.

Is a Garoppolo trade worth it if you're only getting a late Day 3 draft pick in return?

The Cowboys could be facing a similar dilemma. Prescott's injury presents major issues, yet he's still set to return at some point this year. Do they want to part with valuable draft compensation for a player who's only going to start for maybe half the season?

This could be a case of throwing good money after bad, too.

A 19-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 1 was a sobering way for Dallas to open the season, and the result laid bare how there are issues that extend beyond the quarterback position.

Although the idea of starting Rush isn't ideal, upgrading to Garoppolo may not be enough to drastically alter the Cowboys' trajectory.

The San Francisco 49ers fell to the Chicago Bears 19-10 in Sunday's season opener at a rainy Soldier Field, but second-year quarterback Trey Lance isn't using the weather conditions as an excuse for his performance.

"I have a lot of stuff to clean up, for sure," Lance told reporters after the game. "But man, I'm excited. I've still got my head up. I'm excited to get ready to go next week."

Head coach Kyle Shanahan discussed Lance's performance:

"I thought he did some good things coming out. I thought everything was pretty smooth from the beginning. I would have loved to hit on that one down in the red zone that we had Kroft, but he came back and made a big play the next series. I thought he did some good things, but the way it got there at the end, everything kind of fell apart there."

Lance completed 13-of-28 passes for 164 yards and one interception. He also had 13 carries for 54 yards in the loss.

San Francisco's lone touchdown of the afternoon came on a six-yard rushing score by Deebo Samuel, who carrried the ball eight times for 52 yards. He also caught two passes for just 14 yards.

While he started two games last year as Jimmy Garoppolo's backup, Sunday's game marked Lance's first as San Francisco's leading quarterback. And even though he struggled, there's certainly a lot to look forward to moving forward.

The 49ers committed to Lance as their starting signal-caller shortly after the 2021 campaign came to a close. They attempted to trade Garoppolo over the summer, but his shoulder surgery and salary cap hit before he restructured his contract didn't make for much interest from opposing teams.

San Francisco selected Lance third overall in the 2021 NFL draft out of North Dakota State.

The 22-year-old completed 57.7 percent of his passes for 603 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions in addition to rushing for 168 yards and one score in six appearances last year.

Lance will look to improve in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi's Stadium and help San Francisco grab its first win of the season in front of the Red and Gold faithful.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance did not live up to expectations in his first start as the team's QB1.

Lance finished 13-of-28 for 164 yards and an interception as the 49ers lost 19-10 to the Chicago Bears in Sunday's Week 1 battle.

Though San Francisco went up 10-0 early, the offense couldn't add to the lead, and the Bears eventually pulled in front.

It put pressure on Lance, who stumbled when playing from behind:

It led to a disappointing loss against a team that's not expected to contend for a playoff spot.

Lance certainly displayed his upside, especially as a runner while totaling 54 rushing yards on 13 carries.

The quarterback also showcased his arm with several impressive throws in ugly weather conditions at Soldier Field.

The problem was the inconsistency, missing several big opportunities.

After making just two starts as a rookie, it's clear the 2021 No. 3 overall pick has room to grow in his second NFL season.

Lance could still have a short leash with last year's starter, Jimmy Garoppolo, waiting on the sidelines. It will keep the pressure high for the home opener in Week 2 against NFC West rival Seattle Seahawks.

San Francisco 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell left Sunday's game with a knee injury and was ruled out for the remainder of the contest, per ESPN's Field Yates.

That left Jeff Wilson Jr. atop the depth chart for the remainder of Sunday's matchup with the Chicago Bears, and called into question for fantasy players who might emerge as the team's top running back option should Mitchell's injury be serious enough to cost him significant time.

Right now, Wilson is absolutely the safest option for fantasy players, in large part because there is a ton of uncertainty after him on the depth chart. While Jordan Mason was active on Sunday, both Tyrion Davis-Price and Tyler Allgeier were healthy scratches.

Wilson, 26, came into Sunday with 1,265 career rushing yards and 13 touchdowns in his four seasons, largely serving as a backup option for the team. That doesn't make him the sexiest of picks, but his longevity also suggests that head coach Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers trust him.

If you want to go for the bigger splash, however, Mason is the current front-runner for the high-risk, high-reward waiver claim. While Davis-Price was a third-round pick this offseason, the fact that he was a healthy scratch is a major concern.

Remember Trey Sermon, the Niners' 2021 third-round pick who was all over fantasy radars last season and failed to make an impact before he was eventually released this summer while Mitchell thrived?

Well, Davis-Price's healthy scratch has major Sermon vibes, while Mason—an undrafted free agent—has bigger Mitchell vibes.

The other factor to consider is that the Niners used superstar Deebo Samuel as a de facto running back last season when the injury bug bit and were already giving him major backfield touches in Week 1 against the Bears.

His ability to factor in that role somewhat hurts the upside of both Mitchell and Mason as well.

Still, the safe selection if Mitchell's injury proves to be a lengthy one is Mason. He'll have flex appeal as the team's starter. Mason is a bigger gamble, no doubt, but if you want to swing for the fences, he's the pitch to hit.

San Francisco 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell suffered a knee injury in Sunday's season opener against the Chicago Bears and was ruled out for the remainder of the game, the team announced.

Mitchell had six carries for 41 yards before exiting.

It's a tough blow for Mitchell, who was in and out of the lineup in his rookie year because of knee, shoulder and rib injuries. The sixth-round pick out of Louisiana also missed time with a concussion.

In 11 games last season, he rushed for 963 yards and five touchdowns and also caught 19 passes for 137 yards and one score.

In addition, the 24-year-old underwent knee surgery in April but fully recovered in time for training camp with the Niners in July. After having surgery, he told reporters that he wanted to become a more complete running back.

"Really, just to improve on everything, on things that I need to work with," Mitchell said. "Really to just build on what I did last year and just to become that perfect back."

With Mitchell atop San Francisco's depth chart, he's expected to carry much of the load this year. However, when he misses time, Jeff Wilson Jr., Tyrion Davis-Price and Trey Sermon should see more playing time.

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is out for Sunday's season opener against the Chicago Bears because of a groin injury, according to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle.

The sudden development surely will have fantasy football managers scrambling to set their Week 1 lineups. The tight ends available on the waiver wire might not be as decorated as Kittle, but there are some options that have favorable matchups that could be worth taking a look at.

NBC Sports fantasy football expert suggests Isaiah Likely of the Baltimore Ravens, Mo Alie-Cox of the Indianapolis Colts and Robert Tonyan of the Green Bay Packers as top waiver-wire adds this week. There are other options as well, such as Gerald Everett of the Los Angeles Chargers and Irv Smith of the Minnesota Vikings, so fantasy managers who have Kittle on their rosters need not panic.

A three-time Pro Bowl selection, Kittle is one of San Francisco's most consistent weapons, so his presence in the passing attack will surely be missed.

But what does Kittle's absence mean for the fantasy production of 49ers receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel?

Samuel will likely maintain his status as San Francisco's top receiving option. He has proved himself to be a reliable No. 1 receiver and a fantasy football powerhouse after earning first-team All-Pro honors in 2021.

The versatile fourth-year wideout is likely to remain the focal point of San Francisco's offense going forward.

Aiyuk is a more complicated case, though.

The 24-year-old had an inconsistent sophomore season in 2021, finishing with 56 catches for 826 yards and five touchdowns. He recorded over 100 receiving yards just once in 17 games.

Aiyuk reportedly had a strong training camp, so there is some hope that he's ready to fulfill his potential. He will see more passes coming his way with Kittle out of the lineup.

Fantasy owners should remain cautious with the Arizona State product, and he should stay on the bench unless there's a desperate situation at receiver.

Samuel, on the other hand, is a must-start as long as he remains healthy. He will maintain his target share even after Kittle returns, so fantasy owners can rely on him until the end of the season.

Kittle's absence will also impact quarterback Trey Lance, who is in his first year as San Francisco's starter. Lance will no longer have the big tight end as his safety blanket, so Samuel and Aiyuk will have to step up to keep the 22-year-old signal-caller comfortable.

It can be expected that Lance will be using his ability as a runner more with Kittle out of the lineup. Elijah Mitchell should also have more opportunities out of the backfield, but fantasy managers should be wary of Lance taking goal-line carries away from the starting running back.