Kaelon Black
Kaelon Black
Kaelon Black had a promising debut for the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1, but we still don’t know if the rookie will suit up for the team’s Week 2 contest against the Miami Dolphins. Selected in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Indiana product looked impressive during the team’s season-opening win against the Los Angeles Rams. Splitting snaps with veteran Christian McCaffrey, Black finished his first regular season game with 65 rushing yards on 14 attempts.
The running back suffered a groin injury and was limited in practice throughout the week. While he’s officially questionable, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport recently tweeted out that Kaelon Black is “ready to go” for Week 2’s battle against the Miami Dolphins. Rapoport’s tweet also noted that head coach Kyle Shanahan called the groin injury “minor,” which suggests the team was simply being cautious with their young running back.
Kaelon Black
| Source: Lastwordonsports.com - David Latham, Managing Editor
Kaelon Black Injury Update: 49ers RB Likely to Play In Week 2
Needless to say, this is good news for the San Francisco 49ers, although they probably won’t need Kaelon Black to defeat the Miami Dolphins. While any team can defeat any other on any given Sunday, there is a significant talent disparity between the San Francisco 49ers and Miami Dolphins. Kyle Shanahan’s squad is one of the most talented groups in the league, while the Dolphins embraced a rebuild in the offseason by taking on a record amount of dead money to release Tua Tagovailoa and trade wide receiver Jaylen Waddle.
Assuming Kaelon Black is ready to go, the rookie could receive a good amount of garbage-time touches today. Christian McCaffrey is still the unquestioned starter, but the former first-round pick is getting older and probably wouldn’t survive another 400-touch season. Having a competent backup in Black means that both running backs can stay fresh throughout the 17-game season and into the playoffs.