Who is Khalan Laborn?

Typically, draft capital provides prospects with a great degree of insulation for playing time and job security. If there is one thing we know about the Shanahans and running backs, they will give anyone a chance if they can play. 

Even at quarterback, there is uncertainty over who the 49ers’ long-term starter is. Is it seventh-rounder Brock Purdy or Trey Lance, who the 49ers traded three first-round picks to get at pick number three overall?

We know Christian McCaffrey is the unquestioned starter at running back for the 49ers. This article is not about a player who can take his job based on talent alone. This is about “contingent upside”.  It is about finding a player widely available in Dynasty leagues who could contribute if there was an injury. Given the injury history of McCaffrey and the 49ers running backs, no team has a higher probability of exhausting its running back depth chart than San Francisco.

Here is a list of the 49ers leading rushers since Kyle Shanahan became coach:

Shanahan certainly has a type. 200-210 lbs. is small by NFL running back standards but seems to be the prototype for the 49ers. The general thought process is this size running back can’t withstand the punishment of the NFL game. As such, these running backs are typically drafted in later rounds or not drafted at all. But if you have a depth chart full of this prototype, the durability is less of an issue. It is almost “planned attrition”.

Enter Khalan Laborn, a 5’9, 204 lbs. undrafted running back out of Marshall.

I decided to dive deeper into Laborn when I saw this tweet from Grant Cohn of Sports Illustrated and 49ers Fan Nation.

High School

Flashback to 2016. A young Laborn just ran for 1,969 yards and 23 touchdowns for Bishop Sullivan. He is now a two-time All-American, ranked as the number-one all-purpose back by 247 Sports and Rivals. He was named MVP in the Under Armour All-America Game. Laborn is a consensus five-star prospect who has offers from a litany of blue-blood schools, including Alabama, Georgia, Auburn, Ohio St, Penn St, Tennessee, and Miami. Instead, Laborn opts to play for Florida St, making quite the first impression rolling up in a Seminole decked-out Lamborghini and the Florida St flag.

Seminoles

Led by Jimbo Fisher, Florida St had a loaded backfield in 2017 led by Cam Akers and ZaQuandre White. Laborn ended up redshirting his freshman year. After the season, Fisher left the Seminoles to take the helm at Texas A&M. Willie Taggart was hired as the new Florida St. head coach. 

Akers was still the lead back at this point, but Laborn was primed for a larger role. Unfortunately, after just one touch, a 37-yard reception, Laborn dislocated his knee and missed the rest of the year. 

In 2019, Taggart was still coach, and the Seminoles were now in disarray following their worst winning percentage season since 1948. Their offensive line is famously bad, and Cam Akers is still in town. Akers leads the Seminoles in rushing with 1,144 yards and 5.0 yards per carry. In his first real game action, Laborn contributes 297 yards rushing and 4.7 yards per carry, with 10 receptions for 66 yards for the year. 

After a promising campaign, Laborn seemed prime to take the lead running back duties for the Seminoles in 2020. However, he was dismissed from the football program for violating team rules. The reasoning was kept in-house, but with a new coach in town, Mike Norvell, Laborn was kicked off the team. He was allowed to finish his time as a student at Florida St and still had two years of football eligibility remaining.

Thundering Herd

Laborn once again chose to enter a football program with a stud running back. Rasheen Ali had just put up a monster season as a freshman at Marshall. He had 1,401 yards rushing and 23 touchdowns to go along with 45 receptions and 334 yards receiving. This is an attractive aspect of Laborn’s resume. He certainly seems to embrace competition.

Then, after a college career filled with misfortune, fortune finally showed brightly on Laborn as Ali took a leave of absence from the Thundering Herd for undisclosed reasons. In Laborn’s first game with Marshall, they proceeded to post 380 yards rushing against Norfolk St. Laborn had 102 yards rushing and two touchdowns on just 12 carries. The rest, as they say, is history. Laborn was off and running. He finished the season with 1,513 yards rushing and 16 touchdowns. He also had 16 receptions for 116 yards. His 1,513 yards ranked 10th in the nation. Laborn had an astounding 38 explosive plays of 10 yards or more.

In a slightly more subdued ceremony than his college announcement, Laborn declared for the NFL draft forgoing his last year of college football eligibility. He was unceremoniously undrafted but was one of the more sought-after targets as an undrafted free agent, along with Sean Tucker. His landing spot was outstanding as he went to the San Francisco 49ers with a coach who cares little about draft capital and churns through running backs like butter.

NFL Combine

Laborn had a solid performance at the NFL Combine. He measured in at the San Francisco running back prototype of 5’9″, 204 lbs. There is no reason to spend draft capital on a player you value far more than other teams. The zone scheme requires good vision and short bursts over long speed. Laborn’s 40-yard dash time wasn’t fantastic at 4.52, but his 10-yard split was elite at 1.56. This is the type of burst perfect for the Shanahan zone scheme. He showed excellent strength for his size, benching 225 pounds 23 times. His vertical of 38.5 inches and broad jump of 10’ 5 inches are also graded as elite in Kent Lee Platte’s Relative Athletic Score metric. His overall RAS was 8.47

Cohn continued to speak glowingly of Laborn, stating, “(Laborn) is by far the most impressive undrafted free agent in the field. Has thick legs, a strong upper body, and very little body fat. Caught three passes in the flat and exploded after the catch. I expect he will make the 53-man roster sooner rather than later.

Conclusion

So, what remains is opportunity. McCaffrey and Mitchell are clearly ahead of Laborn on the depth chart, but they are also both undersized players, around 200 lbs. We have seen both have their share of injury stints over the years. Then you have undrafted Jordan Mason and Tyrion Davis-Price, who did nothing as a rookie.

If there is any team that it is worthwhile to roster a third or fourth-string running back in Dynasty, it is the 49ers. Take a flyer on Khalan Laborn to be the next hidden gem 49ers’ running back.

I hope you enjoyed reading my article. My goal is to provide actionable advice you can utilize to improve your dynasty team. You can follow me on Twitter @force_fantasy. #DFFArmy