Many believe the San Francisco 49ers valued running back Kaelon Black far higher than the consensus—and that became clear when the team selected him in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft (No. 90 overall).

Black was widely projected to be taken later, with some labeling the pick a significant reach. He wasn't even invited to the NFL Scouting Combine, reinforcing expectations that he would come off the board in the later rounds.


Internally, however, the 49ers saw a very different player.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan, speaking on The Rich Eisen Show, explained the team's reasoning behind selecting Black earlier than expected.

"We thought he was the—trying to think of the way to word this—but we had him as the second-rated back on the board," Shanahan said. "That's just our evaluation of him. Right or wrong, that's our evaluation, and then, you've got to decide where you think he's going to go. And I think that's the hardest thing with this league.

"You got a guy who's not invited to the Combine, so what does that mean? Man, maybe it means he's going in the sixth round. But then you evaluate him, you're like, 'Man, I think this is a third-round running back.'"

The prevailing perception in the league often leads teams to label a prospect a "sleeper," a player with upside who can be had in later rounds. However, looking at the draft picture in its entirety can change that perception.


"But then you start to watch the whole draft, and you start to watch all the backs, and evaluate all the backs together, and this wasn't as deep of a draft as years past for running backs," Shanahan said. "And when you look at it all, and you take a census of scouts, of coaches—it's a whole process—but you start to get to April, and the majority of our place is ranking him up there."

The risk comes when just one other team has a similar view of a player. That could mean missing out on a prospect you fell in love with because you thought he would be available later.

"Well, by the time that the draft came, we feel everyone's looking at this guy as a fourth-round pick," Shanahan said. "And so, if everyone's looking at him as a fourth-round pick, if we want him, I'll take him at 90 in the third. We'll be all right, everyone hating on us and judging that, as long as that's what we feel like."

Shanahan added that past experiences—waiting too long on targeted players only to see them selected just before their next pick—factored into the decision.

"You're like, 'Man, why'd we try to get cute? It was close enough,'" he said.


That mindset, combined with conviction in their evaluation, made the choice straightforward for San Francisco—even if it drew criticism from outside the building.



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