{"id":7527,"date":"2026-08-23T05:06:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-23T05:06:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7527"},"modified":"2026-08-23T05:06:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-23T05:06:11","slug":"bruising-rookie-kaelon-black-making-noise-in-49ers-running-back-room","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7527","title":{"rendered":"Bruising rookie Kaelon Black making noise in 49ers\u2019 running back room"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SANTA CLARA \u2013 The 49ers\u2019 trademark play is outside zone, a run in which the offensive line flows in one direction and the running back is required to make a quick decision.<\/p>\n

Read more SF Giants blow ninth-inning lead in walk-off loss to Red Sox, waste Tidwell\u2019s excellent start<\/a><\/p>\n

Though he is only a rookie out of Indiana, Kaelon Black already looks comfortable finding a seam and taking on contact in his first preseason. Black took eight carries in Thursday\u2019s victory over the Chargers and turned them into 33 yards.<\/p>\n

Such production in a zone-based scheme was nothing new for a back who piled up 2,261 yards and 16 touchdowns in four seasons split across James Madison and Indiana.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would definitely say it\u2019s about the time put in and just being focused on the details,\u201d Black said Saturday. \u201cI ran a lot of zone in Indiana, and even at James Madison with the same coach \u2026 but you\u2019re on a different level now, this is the pro leagues, so you have to stick your foot in the ground and have to get vertical and impose your will.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though Patrick Taylor is on the injured reserve and Isaac Guerendo is still on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, the 49ers\u2019 running back room is beginning to take shape.<\/p>\n

Star Christian McCaffrey is expected to be ready to play by the time the 49ers kick off the regular season in Australia against the Los Angeles Rams, Sincere McCormick has carved out a role for himself, Jordan James returned to practice and ran with the second string offense after battling a rib injury and now Black is making an impression.<\/p>\n

Bruising runs were Black\u2019s speciality on Indiana\u2019s national championship-winning team, and with a 208-pound frame, he has the ability to run through contact at the pro level, too.<\/p>\n

But the rookie wanted to focus on his ability to protect the passer, something he will need to do if he wants to carve out a role in coach Kyle Shanahan\u2019s offense.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

That has been an area of the game he and longtime running backs coach Bobby Turner have honed in on since Black joined the organization.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s very hard on me and making sure I\u2019m doing what I\u2019m supposed to be doing on the field,\u201d Black said. \u201cHe has very high expectations for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Richmond Fire Tragedy: Mother dies from her injuries, death total at four<\/a><\/p>\n

The next time Black and the 49ers will be in action is Thursday, when they travel to Las Vegas to play the Raiders \u2013 and Black\u2019s IU teammate Fernando Mendoza \u2013 in the preseason finale.<\/p>\n

MORRIS TALKS ROOKIES<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Defensive coordinator Raheem Morris gave his thoughts on the progress made by a pair of 49ers rookies during the preseason.<\/p>\n

Fifth-round selection Jaden Dugger is still a raw product coming out of Louisiana, but the 6-foot-4, 240-pound linebacker is getting opportunities in practice to try his hand at a variety of spots. He had two tackles and a pass defensed against the Chargers.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s finding his role, he\u2019s finding his niche and he\u2019s doing some really good things,\u201d Morris said. \u201cHe\u2019s one of the people who rushed the passer before in college, and you\u2019ve seen him off the ball cover in college \u2026 you\u2019ve seen him in the secondary. We\u2019ve seen him do a bunch of different things in college, and he\u2019s (going to try to) translate that skillset into what we\u2019ve taught him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edge rusher Romello Height is yet to record a sack or pressure, but Morris believed the 25-year-old rookie displayed improvement in Thursday\u2019s game compared to his debut. Height had a tackle for loss against the Chargers.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe showed a little bit of flash in the first game, showed a little bit more this game, and he\u2019s got more left out there, so there\u2019s more meat on the bone,\u201d Morris said.<\/p>\n

INJURY UPDATES<\/strong><\/p>\n

Starting cornerback Deommodore Lenoir and standout rookie receiver De\u2019Zhaun Stribling were listed as day-to-day with shoulder injuries. Meanwhile, defensive tackle CJ West and offensive lineman Dominick Puni returned from concussions.<\/p>\n

Rookie Carver Willis got first-team reps at right guard, and Jordan James saw action with the second team after missing time with a rib injury.<\/p>\n

Renardo Green, Malik Mustapha, Kurtis Rourke, Wesley Grimes, Nate Hobbs, Zamir White, Jalen Graham, Kyle Juszczyk, Nick Martin, Austen Pleasants, Robert Jones, Vederian Lowe, Brett Toth and Malik Turner did not participate in practice Saturday.<\/p>\n

Read more How a progressive Democrat in Florida gave her party new hope \u2014 and new fears<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kaelon Black, a star on Indiana\u2019s national championship team, is now earning carries on the 49ers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7526,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7527","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nBruising rookie Kaelon Black making noise in 49ers\u2019 running back room - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7527\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bruising rookie Kaelon Black making noise in 49ers\u2019 running back room - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kaelon Black, a star on Indiana\u2019s national championship team, is now earning carries on the 49ers.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7527\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-23T05:06:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7527#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7527\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Bruising rookie Kaelon Black making noise in 49ers\u2019 running back room\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-23T05:06:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7527\"},\"wordCount\":783,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7527#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/2a2c9d82a93512a9e6a2b2ecc428cd98-scaled.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7527#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7527\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7527\",\"name\":\"Bruising rookie Kaelon Black making noise in 49ers\u2019 running back room - 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