What It Means:

The 49ers are limiting Raheem Mostert at this point in the offseason and Jeff Wilson (knee) is expected to be out through the start of the regular season, so Sermon is working as the lead back. He is already putting his dual-threat ability on display by both taking handoffs and catching passes out of the backfield. Sermon will likely be stuck in a committee to start the season, but he has the tools to eventually take over as a workhorse in Kyle Shanahan's scheme. The backfield roster also includes Wayne Gallman, JaMycal Hasty, and 2021 sixth-rounder Elijah Mitchell.

Sermon is currently the RB28 and Mostert is the RB31 in numberFire's preseason fantasy rankings. Our models project the third-rounder for 170.9 carries, 21.1 receptions, 931.9 yards, and 8.5 touchdowns. Mostert is expected to record 152.5 carries with 22.2 catches and Gallman is expected to siphon away 77.3 touches.