The San Francisco 49ers recently welcomed back Elijah Mitchell from a right knee injury that sidelined him for eight weeks.
He’ll likely miss significant time with another knee injury.
Per The Athletic’s Matt Barrows, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said he expects Mitchell to miss six to eight weeks after spraining the MCL in his left knee.
After beginning his career with 1,100 yards and six touchdowns last season, Mitchell left Week 1’s game early. He didn’t return until Week 10.
The 2021 sixth-round selection tallied 190 yards in three games before exiting Sunday’s 13-0 win over the New Orleans Saints.
San Francisco acquired Christian McCaffrey from the Carolina Panthers before Mitchell returned from his first severe knee injury. Making matters worse, McCaffrey is currently experiencing “knee irritation.”
If healthy, McCaffrey could assume a heavier workload down the stretch. Having sent Jeff Wilson Jr. to the Miami Dolphins, the 49ers are only left with rookies Trey Mason and Tyrion Davis-Price as contingency plans.
The 49ers could play the rest of the regular season without Mitchell, starting with Sunday’s matchup against Wilson and the Dolphins.