In the 2026 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers made many puzzling picks, including Kaelon Black. The former Indiana Hoosiers running back ranked No. 197 overall on the Consensus Big Board, yet the 49ers selected him with the No. 90 overall pick in the third round. Kyle Shanahan clearly had a mind of his own when it came to the draft choices for his team.
By the time the 49ers went on the clock at No. 90, RBs Nicholas Singleton and Mike Washington were still available, and offered better value than Black. But the 49ers have never cared much about outside consensus; Shanahan actually had Black as the RB2 on his draft board. Drafting him so high has disappointed many fans and analysts. But for Black, it is a motivation to prove everyone wrong.
“It makes me want to go harder, man,” Kaelon Black said in an exclusive interview with Chase Senior on Wednesday. “I gotta prove my coach right. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t seen the backlash he’s been getting for the pick, but we just stay the course, stay focused, and we’re gonna keep moving to try and prove him right.”
Kaelon Black has six years of experience playing football, so he could contribute right away in Shanahan’s offense. During the 2025 season at Indiana, he also rushed for 1,040 yards and 10 touchdowns. But at the same time, he didn’t start a single game for the National Champions and offered little help as a pass catcher, recording just four catches for 36 yards. Black didn’t even receive an invitation to the NFL Combine.
But that did not affect Kyle Shanahan’s evaluation of the RB. Shanahan believed Black’s ability to fight for extra yards, his physicality, and vision fit the 49ers’ offensive system better than consensus rankings suggested. So, Black became the fifth running back the 49ers have drafted in as many years.
RBs Jordan James, Isaac Guerendo, Tyrion Davis-Price, and Trey Sermon all arrived as mid-round picks in San Francisco, yet none surpassed 500 rushing yards with the franchise. That trend suggests that the 49ers prioritize structural depth at the RB position rather than chasing star power. And this approach makes sense, especially considering Shanahan’s schemes.
Shanahan’s zone-blocking system creates rushing lanes through motion, misdirection, and strong blocking, often allowing mid-round backs to succeed. At the same time, the 49ers already have one of the NFL’s best offensive weapons in RB Christian McCaffrey. He has consistently been rushing for more than 1,000 yards when healthy. But with him turning 30 this year, and injuries piling up behind him, Shanahan had to bolster the depth with a quality RB.
But is Black the right man for the job? There is no doubt that he has potential to develop, and needs to develop. But even he wasn’t sure where he would land in the draft. He was instead prepared for a later-round selection.
“We knew where we felt like where I was going to go,” Black said. “But with the consensus, some people had me as a fifth or sixth round pick, some people had me going undrafted. We had a prediction for me, and it was one of those things where we’ll see what ends up happening.”
Kaelon Black was widely viewed as another reach by a front office that trusts its own evaluations a little too much. He’s only rushed for more than 1,000 yards once in his career, and that was his breakout season. No wonder why the majority were skeptical about this pick.
Kyle Shanahan faces criticism for the 49ers’ 2026 draft class
The 49ers went into this year’s draft with six picks. But they traded down four times and ended up drafting eight players. It’s still early to predict the performance of these eight rookies in the 2026 season, but the reviews have not been kind. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. gave a “C” grade to the 49ers’ 2026 draft class. In Kiper’s view, Kyle Shanahan and co. consistently picked players well ahead of their projected value.
“There were some really confusing picks in this class,” Kiper noted. “I like De’Zhuan Stribling, Kaelon Black, and some others, but it seemed like general manager John Lynch went off the board to get the guys he wanted, often way ahead of where they were valued.”
Most NFL analysts currently view the 49ers’ 2026 draft as average at best, with the Black and Stribling picks facing the brunt of the criticism. However, not every 49ers’ rookie drew criticism.
Defensive tackle Gracen Halton stood out as one of the better value picks because of his pass-rushing upside. Last season at Oklahoma, Halton recorded the fourth-highest pressure rate among FBS DTs at 11.7%, while his 25 pressures ranked second in the SEC. The 49ers reportedly graded him as a third-round prospect before landing him in the fourth.
Third-round pick Romello Height, addressed the team’s major defensive weakness at the edge. Last season, the Niners struggled to pressure quarterbacks, recording only 20 sacks. But last season at Texas Tech, Height recorded 10 sacks and 58 pressures, numbers that ranked among the best in the Big 12. If he adjusts to the NFL quickly, Height could immediately improve the 49ers’ pass rush.
Ultimately, the 49ers’ 2026 draft class reflects how much the organization continues to trust its own evaluations over public opinion. Sometimes that approach has worked well for the 49ers, but more often than not, it has failed to deliver high returns. So, maybe Kyle Shanahan and the front office don’t need to follow outside consensus completely, but they still need to figure out a balance in their drafting approach.
