49ers sign veteran Alfred Morris to bolster banged-up backfield corps

SANTA CLARA - The 49ers have so many injuries, they need to sign a running back off the street just so they can practice and play preseason games.

They expect to sign free agent running back Alfred Morris once he passes a physical today. Then, he will join the team this week during their joint practices in Houston with the Texans, and possibly play against the Texans this Saturday.

The 49ers want Morris to play as soon as possible, because their top two running backs, Jerick McKinnon and Matt Breida, are out. McKinnon has a strained right calf.

Breida has a separated right shoulder. Both could miss the entire preseason.

On Monday, the 49ers had just three healthy running backs at practice: Raheem Mostert, Jeremy McNichols and undrafted rookie Jeff Wilson Jr. They took lots of reps and hits.

“Once you start losing guys, it adds a lot on another person,” 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said after Monday’s practice. “Once you see a guy having to take reps with the twos and with the threes, it’s just a matter of time before that guy gets hurt.”

Morris is with the 49ers to prevent more guys from getting hurt. He will take excessive reps and punishment away from other healthy backs, like a human punching bag.

Morris, 29, played the past two seasons for the Dallas Cowboys as a backup. He rushed 115 times for one touchdown and 547 yards (4.8 yards per carry). His contract expired this offseason, and the Cowboys made no attempt to re-sign him.

Morris started his NFL career in 2012 with the Washington Redskins, when Kyle Shanahan was their offensive coordinator. That season, Morris rushed for 1,613 yards. The next season, 2013, Morris rushed 1,275 yards.

“Alf did a great job for us the two years I was with him,” Shanahan said. “It’s not flashy, but he runs extremely hard. He’s very reliable. You’re blocking for zero (yards), usually he can get at least one.”

Shanahan and Morris haven’t worked together for five years, but Morris still should know Shanahan’s offense.

“There’s no big changes and it’s not that tough for a back,” Shanahan said. “They’ve got to set their track the right way and you hand it off to them and go run. We have a way that we coach guys and stuff, but everyone, when you’re away from something, it’s going to take some time. He is going to be rusty with that stuff, but he’ll get the hang of it, get his tracks consistent and run hard.”

Morris is a long shot to make the 49ers’ final roster. But he will get an opportunity to compete to be the No. 3 running back.

“I wouldn’t invite him unless I believed he had the chance to make the team,” Shanahan said. “I do believe he has the chance to make the team here, and that’s all Alf wants. He wants a chance to compete and I think with some of these injuries that we’ve had, now he does have a chance to compete.

“So, he’s getting in late but we’ll see how he does over these next few weeks. If he’s running the same way he always has, he’ll have a chance.”

And if running backs keep getting injured at this rate, Morris will have a serious chance to make the team.

McKinnon injured himself Sunday. He had an MRI on his knee later that afternoon, but the MRI revealed no damage. He merely strained his calf.

“I think everyone gets a little worried when it’s by your knee,” Shanahan said. “No one realizes your calf goes that high. So, I think he was worried about it just where it was and then once he got the assurance that it was his calf, it made sense that he didn’t have that much pain. I think he felt much better today. I think he’s frustrated that he can’t get that work and stuff that he needs and we all need until Week 1, but at least he feels good that he’ll be ready for Week 1.”

McKinnon’s backup, Breida, separated his shoulder last Thursday during the 49ers’ preseason opener against the Dallas Cowboys. He also suffered no structural damage, and hopes to play Week 1 of the regular season.

Counting Breida and McKinnon, the 49ers have 18 injured players. Last year, they had 21 players on the Injured Reserve List.

On Monday, a reporter asked Shanahan if there’s a reason the 49ers have had so many injuries since he became head coach.

“Oh yeah,” Shanahan said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Guys getting concussions in games could be prevented from them not tackling people I guess. Soft tissue injuries, they can be prevented by having guys not do anything and sit there and just not get hurt and then it will happen in Week 1.”

Shanahan became serious. “There’s a fine line, a very fine line. If a player is complaining about being tight, we can shut him down, and then every single person who ever complains about being tight, you can shut down. Then, ask a group of 90 people in training camp to raise their hands on who’s tight, and 90 people will raise their hand.

“It’s camp. You’ve got to work hard to prepare hard and I think for the most part, most of our injuries are extremely hard to control.”

It has been for the 49ers.