Elijah Mitchell

Elijah I. Mitchell (born May 2, 1998) is an American football running back for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Louisiana.

Early years
Mitchell grew up in Erath, Louisiana and attended Erath High School, where he played high school football. As a senior, he only played in eight games due to injury but still rushed for 1,903 yards and 28 touchdowns. In three seasons as Erath's starting running back, Mitchell rushed for 4,045 yards and 50 touchdowns on 457 carries.

College career
Mitchell played college football for his home state of Louisiana at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Mitchell rushed for 257 yards and four touchdowns on 42 carries as a freshman before breaking a bone in his foot and missing the rest of the season. As a sophomore, he rushed for 977 yards and 13 touchdowns and caught 20 passes for 349 yards and three touchdowns and was named Second-team All-Sun Belt Conference. In his junior season Mitchell was again named second-team All-Sun Belt after rushing for 1,147 yards and 16 rushing touchdowns. In his final season with the Cajuns, Mitchell was once again the team’s leading running back and was named first-team All-Sun Belt after carrying the ball 141 times for 878 yards with eight touchdowns and also caught 16 passes for another 153 yards. In total Mitchell played in 42 games and carried the ball 527 times in college for 3,267 yards with 41 rushing touchdowns, he also caught 49 passes for 597 yards and five touchdowns.

2021 season
Mitchell was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round, 194th overall, of the 2021 NFL Draft. He signed his four-year rookie contract on May 13, 2021.

Mitchell made his NFL debut in the season-opening 41–33 road victory over the Detroit Lions, finishing with 19 carries for 104 yards and a touchdown. During a Week 7 30-18 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, he had 18 carries for 107 yards and a touchdown. In the next game against the Chicago Bears, Mitchell had 18 carries for 137 yards and a touchdown in the 33–22 road victory. During a Week 12 34–26 victory over the Minnesota Vikings, he had 27 carries for 133 yards and a touchdown. During a Week 17 23–7 victory over the Houston Texans, Mitchell had 21 carries for 119 yards to go along with two receptions for 11 yards and a touchdown. He also broke the 49ers' single-season rookie rushing record, rushing for 878 yards in 10 games and surpassing Vic Washington's record 811 yards in 14 games from the 1971 season.

Mitchell finished his rookie year with 207 carries for 963 yards and five touchdowns to go along with 19 receptions for 137 yards and a touchdown in 11 games and 10 starts. In the Wild Card Round against the Dallas Cowboys, he had 27 carries for 96 yards and a touchdown in the 23–17 road victory. During the Divisional Round against the Green Bay Packers, Mitchell had 17 carries for 53 yards in the 13–10 road victory. In the NFC Championship Game against the Los Angeles Rams, he recorded three receptions for 50 yards as the 49ers narrowly lost on the road by a score of 20–17.

2022 season
On September 13, 2022, Mitchell was placed on injured reserve after suffering a sprained MCL in Week 1. He was activated on November 12. Mitchell suffered an MCL tear in Week 12 and was placed on injured reserve on December 3. He was activated on January 7, 2023.

In the 2022 season, Mitchell appeared in five games and had 45 carries for 279 yards and two touchdowns, which both came in the regular-season finale against the Arizona Cardinals. He finished the 38–13 victory with five carries for 55 yards and the two aforementioned touchdowns.

During the Wild Card Round against the Seattle Seahawks, Mitchell recorded two receptions for 25 yards and a touchdown in the 41–23 victory. In the Divisional Round against the Cowboys, he had 14 carries for 51 yards as the 49ers won by a score of 19–12.

2023 season
In the 2023 season, Mitchell appeared in 11 games and started one. He recorded 75 carries for 281 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns, both coming in the last two weeks of the regular season. The 49ers reached Super Bowl LVIII but lost 25-22 to the Kansas City Chiefs. In the Super Bowl, Mitchell had 2 carries for 8 yards.