Ohio State product and current 49er, Carlos Hyde, might be the luckiest running back coming into the 2015 season. Not only does Hyde avoid battling Frank Gore for touches, he’s also going to be playing alongside a teammate that has a record for making fellow running backs thrive.
Courtesy: detroitlions.com
His name is Reggie Bush.
Make no mistake about it: in 2013 Bush excelled with 1006 rushing yards. But what about his backfield partner, Joique Bell? Bell saw his carries more than double from the year before. Then, in 2014, Bell’s carries were almost triple the 2012 number—223 attempts. That’s nearly 150 more attempts then Bush had in Detroit last year.
Reggie Bush had multiple injuries and ankle problems over that time, and he ended up missing 7 games over two seasons. That opened the door for Bell.
Bell took advantage of the opportunity. He gained 860 yards last season, more than double the yards he had the year before Bush’s arrival. Bell was also able to benefit from having Reggie Bush alongside him, and he’s still around Mo’ Town: he’ll be the Lions’ starter in ’15.
Unlike Bell, Carlos Hyde won’t battle for starting reps. He’ll inherit the workload Gore leaves behind. Hyde’s carries should land somewhere between what carries he had last year (83) and the number of carries Gore had in ’14 (255). Hyde scored 13% of the 49er’s offensive touchdowns last year (Gore had 17%), and there’s many reasons to predict those numbers will increase.
Caption: freep.com
Hyde should excel this Fall. Bush? He has a 1 year, million-dollar guaranteed contract. But will he be around in ’16?
It will be interesting to watch.
