What It Means:

Williams was handpicked by head coach Kyle Shanahan, who banged the table for him in the 49ers' draft room, even when general manager John Lynch left Williams off the team's draft board. Position coach Bobby Turner also personally stayed in touch with Williams throughout the draft process and also campaigned for him. Hyde is entering the final year of his contract for a regime that has zero ties to him and has proven injury-prone. This could be a two-headed backfield for 2017 before Williams takes over as the lead back in 2018.

In two seasons at Utah, Williams rushed for 1,884 yards on 314 carries (6.04 yards per carry) with 13 touchdowns. The 49ers finished 13th last season in schedule-adjusted Offensive Rushing Net Expected Points per play.