SANTA CLARA – Carlos Hyde, a second-round pick last year, returns to take on his expected role as the 49ers’ starting running back. But nothing will be handed to him as a second-year player.
The 49ers also added Reggie Bush as a free agent and invested a fourth-round draft pick in Mike Davis.
The 49ers will have a leading rusher this season not named Frank Gore for the first time since Gore was a rookie in 2005. One player who has been mostly overlooked is Kendall Hunter, who sat out all of last season after sustaining a torn ACL in the 49ers’ second practice of training camp.