In the last 10 years, five running backs have been taken in the top 10. Four of the five (Saquon Barkley, Ezekiel Elliott, Leonard Fournette and Todd Gurley) had 229 carries or more in their rookie season. The fifth (Christian McCaffrey) had only 117 carries but added 80 catches. When teams draft backs in the top 10, like Bijan Robinson, they use them a lot.

Related players: Tyler Allgeier, Cordarrelle Patterson

The author went on to say Allgeier will still get plenty of use because the Falcons ran the ball an NFL-high 559 times last year. So even if Robinson carries the ball 250 times, there are still plenty of carries to go around. Patterson’s role is a little bit more of a mystery, the story added. He'll be third on the team in carries, according to the author, but how far back he’s going to be is a question mark. The prediction is Patterson's 144 carries from a year ago could get cut in half this season.

Christian McCaffrey said he dodged a bullet with his knee issue, said he’ll play in full Sunday. “I feel great,” he said.

Related Players: Tyrion Davis-Price, Jordan Mason

If CMC is a full go, Davis-Price and Mason are obsolete as anything more than a desperation play. McCaffrey should be considered an RB1, even if he's banged up.

Who rises in the running back rotation now that Elijah Mitchell will miss a substantial amount of time? Never underestimate Shanahan’s fondness for veteran Tevin Coleman, who is on the practice squad but had a pivotal role in the Week 5 win in Carolina.

Meanwhile, Shanahan continues to sing the praises of third-round pick Tyrion Davis-Price even though Price has been a healthy scratch since Week 7. Jordan Mason has been in uniform instead of Davis-Price because Mason is the better special-teamer and has become a stalwart on the kickoff and punt units.

Related players: Christian McCaffrey

The story said McCaffrey played about 65% of the snaps but is also dealing with some knee irritation. Ideally, the 49ers would like to keep McCaffrey around that mark, so the RB who is next up could certainly have some fantasy value with Mitchell sidelined again. In deeper leagues or dynasty leagues, Coleman could still be on your wire and may be worth a stash until this situation sorts itself out.

The 49ers hoped to avoid a long-term knee injury with Elijah Mitchell. They didn't. Mitchell is expected to miss 6-8 weeks, per head coach Kyle Shanahan. Meanwhile, the 49ers will manage Christian McCaffrey's "knee irritation" during the week.

Related Players: Jordan Mason, Tyrion Davis-Price

The injury bug continues to live rent-free inside the 49ers backfield. Stay tuned for what exactly "knee irritation" means, but Tyrion Davis-Price should be nabbed off of waiver wires wherever he is available for the fantasy playoffs. Davis-Price is no longer going to be healthy-scratched and needs to be on all fantasy rosters moving forward in case he becomes the de facto RB1 in San Francisco's offense.

My guess is that Elijah Mitchell and Christian McCaffrey will be the main runners with Mitchell getting early-down carries and McCaffrey having more of a change-of-pace and third-down role.

Related players: Deebo Samuel

McCaffrey was getting 85 percent of the snaps for Carolina. The author said he can’t imagine the 49ers want his snap counts that high, and the hope seems to be that he and the oft-injured Mitchell will save each other wear and tear. In another question from the mailbag, the author said they could turn to a thunder-and-lightning-and-thunder combination of Samuel, McCaffrey and Mitchell.

Stunner: Panthers are trading Pro-Bowl RB Christian McCaffrey to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for draft picks, sources tell ESPN.

McCaffrey returns to the Bay Area, where he attended Stanford.

Related players: D'Onta Foreman, Chuba Hubbard, Elijah Mitchell, Jeff Wilson

This should enhance McCaffrey's value since the 49ers run a more competent offense than the Panthers. Elijah Mitchell is no longer expected to be a fantasy starter upon his return from injury, and can be dropped if necessary. He's an attrition RB2 now. Jimmy Garoppolo should benefit by having such a good receiving back to throw to, but targets are already at a premium, so Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle each take a slight hit. In Carolina, we'll likely see a committee consisting of D'Onta Foreman on early downs and Chuba Hubbard as a third-down/change-of-pace back. On the season, Foreman has played 31 snaps while Hubbard has played 30. Foreman has 12 touches (all carries), while Hubbard has six carries and one reception.

Multiple NFL teams remain interested and are actively exploring trade scenarios for Panthers star Christian McCaffrey. It is unclear if he'll be dealt ahead of NFL trade deadline, which is coming up on November 1st.

It's hard to pontificate on who CMC would be affecting until we know what team may end up with his services. Still, obviously, he would obliterate the value of running backs and any other underneath options on that new squad. As for Carolina, Chuba Hubbard and D'Onta Foreman have been going back and forth in terms of usage behind McCaffrey, and both of them would get a mild bump while being left behind on an awful offense.

Christian McCaffrey was a game-time decision for the Panthers but he is active against the Cardinals.

Carolina Panthers inactives

RB Raheem Blackshear
CB Stantley Thomas-Oliver
OL Cade Mays
DT Phil Hoskins
WR Terrace Marshall Jr.
DE Amaré Barno

Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey did not practice Thursday for a second day straight due to a quad injury.

Related Players: Chuba Hubbard, D'Onta Foreman

One week ago, McCaffrey was listed on the injury report as a limited participant due to stiffness in his ankle, which appeared to be more of a precautionary measure. Hubbard and Foreman would split the workload against the Cardinals 11th-ranked rush defense. CMC has basically be the lone bright spot on a Panthers offense that has been difficult to watch at times

Matt Rhule said it's a quad injury for Christian McCaffrey. Didn't know about it until after Saints' game. Wouldn't speculate on his status for this week.

Related players: Chuba Hubbard, D'Onta Foreman

McCaffrey did finish the game in Week 3 but given McCaffrey's recent past and injuries, owners may want to take note. For what it's worth, Person did tweet Hubbard said he thinks McCaffrey will be good to go and added Hubbard prepares to play every game. If he can't go, look for Hubbard and Foreman to see some kind of split in the workload.