SANTA CLARA – Running back Joe Williams led the 49ers in rushing yards during the exhibition season as a rookie, but he did not create an overall favorable impression.
Williams was placed on season-ending injured reserve with a minor foot injury heading into the regular season. He came back for the offseason program this year and has placed himself in position to compete for a roster spot.
“I think he has a different mindset – understands a little bit more the standard of the NFL and difference,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday as the club opens a two-day minicamp to close out the offseason program.
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Williams rushed for 130 yards, averaging 5.2 yards a carry, in the exhibition season a year ago. But his work ethic, consistency and problems with fumbling did not help his cause.
Even this year, it will be difficult to break into the 49ers’ top three running backs: Jerick McKinnon, Matt Breida and Raheem Mostert, who is one of the club’s best players on special teams.
But Williams has shown the reasons the 49ers traded up to select him in the fourth round of last year’s draft.
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“When it is blocked right, he has the size and the burst to get through there as fast as anyone,” Shanahan said. “But it’s just about doing it day-in and day-out and protecting the football, and what do you do when the run doesn’t look good. What do you do without the ball in your hands?
“Joe has come a long way in a year, and I’m excited about him coming back to training camp.”