The San Francisco 49ers have a free roster spot, and given questions about the running back depth chart, might they consider free agent Joique Bell? The Detroit Lions released running back Joique Bell in February after he refused a pay cut. He was due $2.5 million, but coming off the worst season of his career (90 carries for 311 yards), it is no surprise the team wanted to get a pay cut or release him. Now, Bell says he has at least two, and maybe three offers on the table.
I bring this up because of 49ers offensive coordinator Curtis Modkins. He served as running backs coach in Detroit from 2013 to 2015, where Bell had some ups and downs. In 2013, Bell served as Reggie Bush's backup, rushing 166 times for 650 yards and eight touchdowns. In 2014, Bell ended up with the most snaps ahead of Reggie Bush, rushing 223 times for 860 yards and seven touchdowns. In 2015, Ameer Abdullah was the starting running back, with Bell rushing 90 times for 311 yards and four touchdowns.
Bell would be no more than a depth option at this point. I thought of this because of the Modkins connection, and the questions at running back. In reality, Shaun Draughn and DuJuan Harris are the two veterans who could probably provide basically the same depth at Bell. That being said, the 49ers do have the open roster spot, and if Modkins was a Bell fan, maybe they are one of the offers on the table.