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San Francisco 49ers: Is Carlos Hyde ready to carry the load?

By Nick Ziegler

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It may seem like a long time ago, but the San Francisco 49ers were legitimate title contenders just two seasons ago.

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The 2014 season was a real disappointment for the 49ers, who believed that they were still an elite team in the NFL. The 49ers finished with a 8-8 record and missed the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. The three seasons that the 49ers made the playoffs, they were in the NFC Championship Game each time.

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Due to various reasons with injuries and drama between the front office and head coach Jim Harbaugh, the 49ers were a mess all season.

This season, the 49ers have a new coaching staff with Harbaugh going to coach Michigan, but they have also lost a ton of talent.

One of the players that has been a great player for the 49ers was running back Frank Gore. In 10 seasons with the 49ers, Gore totaled 11,073 rushing yards, 64 rushing touchdowns, and a very solid 4.5 yards per carry average.

For the last nine seasons, Gore has been a battering ram in the 49ers’ backfield, as he has totaled 200 carries or more every season. As the starting running back in those nine seasons, Gore only missed 1,000 yards once in his career in 2010, as he missed five games with an injury.

Dec 28, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore (21) rushes for a gain during the fourth quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi

Gore is now 32-years-old, and that generally means that his time as a good running back is coming to an end. Even though he has been great in his 10 seasons with the 49ers, Gore will now be starting a new chapter of his career with Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts.

Replacing a great running back like Gore is not an easy thing to do, but the 49ers hope that they drafted him in 2014.

In the 2014 NFL Draft, the 49ers selected running back Carlos Hyde from Ohio St. Hyde was Gore’s backup last season, and gained some valuable experience in his rookie season. Last season, Hyde totaled 333 rushing yards, four rushing touchdowns, and a 4.0 yards per carry average.

With Gore in Indianapolis, it is now time for Hyde to carry the workload for the 49ers in the backfield.

After the departure of Gore, the 49ers signed another veteran running back in Reggie Bush. Unlike Gore, Bush has been more of an elusive running back, and is a great weapon as a receiver.

According to Peter King of SI.com, the 49ers will be featuring Hyde much more as a runner compared to Bush.

The 250 carries the 49ers are expecting from Hyde is a huge jump for the 83 carries he totaled in 2014. The 250 target is quite the workload for Hyde, as only eight running backs eclipsed that total in 2014. If Hyde does reach that mark, he would be joining some of the best running backs in the game, as Gore, Le’Veon Bell, DeMarco Murray, LeSean McCoy, Marshawn Lynch, Matt Forte, Alfred Morris, and Arian Foster all had over 250 carries.

If Hyde totals over 250 carries he will likely have well over 1,000 rushing yards, as the read-option with Colin Kaepernick will still be used for the 49ers’ offense.

Being the replacement to a franchise-great is never easy, but the 49ers believe they have a special player in Hyde.

Next: What are the expectations for Kaepernick in 2015?

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