The San Francisco 49ers made a big splash this past offseason when they signed Jerick McKinnon to a four-year contract worth $30 million, with $11.7 million fully guaranteed at signing. There was competition for McKinnon, but either way, that is a lot of money for a guy who had not held down a starting job previously.
When McKinnon suffered a torn ACL before the regular season even started, there were plenty of concerns. Head coach Kyle Shanahan acknowledged the team had to adjust their game-plan for the season with their top running back sidelined.