There's a new coaching staff in San Francisco, and that's caused some talk about the future of seemingly one of the team's few building blocks, Carlos Hyde. Although the running back has generally played well, he's missed 14 games due to injury in his first three seasons, and may not be an ideal fit for the new offensive scheme.
This article says the team is considering giving up on Hyde and drafting Leonard Fournette at No. 2 overall. Seems unlikely, but generally these reports come from somewhere.
New GM John Lynch responded to that report here, albeit indirectly. Lynch essentially says the team is looking forward to seeing how Hyde fits with the new offense.
Maybe scheme (Kyle Shanahan favors a zone-blocking system) is an issue, or maybe they're concerned whether Hyde can stay healthy. Or maybe they're concerned about ball security. Hyde fumbled 5 times on 244 touches last season. Among the 59 ballcarriers with at least 100 touches, only two backs had a higher rate of fumbles. One of those players, Matt Jones, was benched last year. The other, Chris Ivory, was in a committee, and that's another team that's been mentioned as a possibility to draft Fournette.
Fumble rates by running backs with 100-plus touches last year are shown below.
| RUNNING BACK FUMBLE RATES, 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | No | Fum | Pct |
| Chris Ivory, Jac. | 137 | 5 | 3.65% |
| Matt Jones, Wash. | 107 | 3 | 2.80% |
| Carlos Hyde, S.F. | 244 | 5 | 2.05% |
| Devontae Booker, Den. | 205 | 4 | 1.95% |
| Justin Forsett, 3TM | 107 | 2 | 1.87% |
| Ryan Mathews, Phil. | 168 | 3 | 1.79% |
| Alfred Blue, Hou. | 112 | 2 | 1.79% |
| Spencer Ware, K.C. | 247 | 4 | 1.62% |
| Chris Thompson, Wash. | 134 | 2 | 1.49% |
| Ty Montgomery, G.B. | 139 | 2 | 1.44% |
| Ezekiel Elliott, Dall. | 354 | 5 | 1.41% |
| Jay Ajayi, Mia. | 288 | 4 | 1.39% |
| Duke Johnson Jr., Clev. | 144 | 2 | 1.39% |
| David Johnson, Ariz. | 373 | 5 | 1.34% |
| Jonathan Stewart, Car. | 226 | 3 | 1.33% |
| LeVeon Bell, Pitt. | 336 | 4 | 1.19% |
| Christine Michael, 2TM | 173 | 2 | 1.16% |
| T.J. Yeldon, Jac. | 180 | 2 | 1.11% |
| LeSean McCoy, Buff. | 284 | 3 | 1.06% |
| Shaun Draughn, S.F. | 103 | 1 | 0.97% |
| DeAndre Washington, Oak. | 105 | 1 | 0.95% |
| Zach Zenner, Det. | 106 | 1 | 0.94% |
| Mike Gillislee, Buff. | 111 | 1 | 0.90% |
| Terrance West, Balt. | 227 | 2 | 0.88% |
| Latavius Murray, Oak. | 228 | 2 | 0.88% |
| DeMarco Murray, Tenn. | 346 | 3 | 0.87% |
| Kenneth Dixon, Balt. | 118 | 1 | 0.85% |
| Isaiah Crowell, Clev. | 238 | 2 | 0.84% |
| Mark Ingram, N.O. | 251 | 2 | 0.80% |
| Paul Perkins, NYG | 127 | 1 | 0.79% |
| Giovani Bernard, Cin. | 130 | 1 | 0.77% |
| Jordan Howard, Chi. | 281 | 2 | 0.71% |
| Melvin Gordon, S.D. | 295 | 2 | 0.68% |
| Tevin Coleman, Atl. | 149 | 1 | 0.67% |
| Lamar Miller, Hou. | 299 | 2 | 0.67% |
| Frank Gore, Ind. | 301 | 2 | 0.66% |
| LeGarrette Blount, N.E. | 306 | 2 | 0.65% |
| Matt Asiata, Minn. | 154 | 1 | 0.65% |
| Doug Martin, T.B. | 158 | 1 | 0.63% |
| Todd Gurley, L.A. | 321 | 2 | 0.62% |
| Darren Sproles, Phil. | 164 | 1 | 0.61% |
| Bilal Powell, NYJ | 189 | 1 | 0.53% |
| Rashad Jennings, NYG | 216 | 1 | 0.46% |
| Matt Forte, NYJ | 248 | 1 | 0.40% |
| Devonta Freeman, Atl. | 281 | 1 | 0.36% |
| Jeremy Hill, Cin. | 243 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Jerick McKinnon, Minn. | 202 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Robert Kelley, Wash. | 180 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Jalen Richard, Oak. | 163 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Tim Hightower, N.O. | 158 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Theo Riddick, Det. | 145 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Jacquizz Rodgers, T.B. | 142 | 0 | 0.00% |
| C.J. Anderson, Den. | 126 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Derrick Henry, Tenn. | 123 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Thomas Rawls, Sea. | 122 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Charcandrick West, K.C. | 116 | 0 | 0.00% |
| DeAngelo Williams, Pitt. | 116 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Dwayne Washington, Det. | 102 | 0 | 0.00% |
| James White, N.E. | 101 | 0 | 0.00% |
--Andy Richardson