The ability to adapt to injuries can make or break your fantasy season. Earlier this week, San Francisco 49ers running back Jerick McKinnon tore his ACL, ending his season and sending the 49ers backfield into disarray. With McKinnon out of the picture, the fate of the 49ers running game falls in the hands of Alfred Morris and Matt Breida. However, which player will end up having the bigger season, Alfred Morris or Matt Breida?
Morris is available in just 91.1% of NFL.com fantasy leagues, while Breida is available in 88.4% of leagues. Head coach Kyle Shanahan loves to use his running backs, so one of these players should put up big fantasy numbers. The only question is, which guy will it be?
Who Should You Take: Alfred Morris or Matt Breida?
Alfred Morris
Morris entered the league as the Washington Redskins sixth-round draft pick in 2012. While in Washington, Morris spent the first two years under the tutelage of then-offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan. Morris enjoyed the two best seasons of his career with Shanahan, rushing for a combined 2,888 yards and 20 touchdowns. He’s a natural fit for Shanahan’s scheme and could enjoy a career renaissance in 2018.
However, there are worries the Morris’ best years are behind him. Now age 30, his rushing yardage decreased every year from 2012 to 2016 before he had a minor resurgence in 2017. Still, the seventh-year running back hasn’t cleared 1,000 yards in a season since 2014 and hasn’t been a regular starter since 2015.
While Morris is a good fit for Shanahan in the running game, he may not be the best fit in the passing game. Shanahan loves incorporating his running backs in the aerial attack, as Morris just doesn’t have that ability. His career high for receptions is just 17, and his career high for receiving yards is just 155.
By comparison, Carlos Hyde recorded a career-high 59 receptions for 350 yards under Shanahan’s watch. Back when he was the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons, running back Devonta Freeman recorded 127 receptions for 1,040 yards and five touchdowns over two seasons.
As evidenced by Morris’ early career success, Shanahan won’t shy away from a one-dimensional runner if he has no better option. However, Shanahan has a clear preference for running backs capable of making an impact in the passing game.
Matt Breida
Breida is in his second season with the San Francisco 49ers after making the club as an undrafted rookie in 2017. Breida only has 105 carries in his career, so it’s difficult to place much trust in him. That being said, he seems more likely than Morris to carry this rushing attack.
Despite going undrafted in 2017, Breida actually had a solid college career. In 2014 and 2015, Breida ran for a combined 3,095 yards and 34 touchdowns with the Georgia Southern Eagles. Perhaps what’s most impressive about those numbers is that he averaged 8.7 yards per carry in 2014 and 7.9 yards per carry in 2015. Granted, he wasn’t facing the best competition at Georgia Southern, but he was still one of the most electrifying runners in college football.
A miserable 2016 caused him to go undrafted, but he recovered nicely in his first year in the NFL. Playing behind Carlos Hyde, Breida recorded 465 yards and two touchdowns on 105 rushing attempts, good for a respectable 4.4 yards per carry.
What truly puts him above Morris is his age and his ability out of the backfied. As previously mentioned, Morris is now 30 years old, an age at which running back production starts to notably drift off. Breida, meanwhile, is just 23 years old and entering the prime of his career. There’s obviously more left in his tank, so Shanahan will want to see what the younger player can bring.
Lastly, Breida has shown more as a receiver than Morris ever has. Granted, Breida isn’t a star receiving back by any means, but he’s shown promise in the 49ers offense. As a rookie, Breida recorded 21 receptions for 180 yards and a touchdown. The receptions and yards eclipse Morris’ single-season bests, despite the fact that Breida spent his rookie season coming off the bench.
Last Word on the Alfred Morris or Matt Breida Question
At the end of the day, neither one of these players is going to produce like Jerick McKinnon would have. However, Kyle Shanahan loves to use running backs, and his scheme allows running backs to produce enviable fantasy numbers.
One of these running backs will take advantage of this opportunity, and it will most likely be Matt Breida. Breida is not only a younger player, but he offers more in the passing game than Morris. Morris, now age 30, has lost the skills which once made him a 1,600-yard rusher. Breida is just 23 years old and showed promise during his rookie season.
The 49ers announced Morris and Breida will enter the season competing for the lead back position. However, Breida will likely earn the job sooner rather than later. Make sure to pick him up now before you risk losing him to a priority claim.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
