The Facts: Hunter appears on pace for his comeback eight months after suffering a torn ACL. A video from the 49ers' official team site shows Hunter running well during offseason workouts.
Diehards Line:
Hunter didn't even make it out of the second day of training camp in 2014 after the knee injury ended his season before it even started. Yet, when Colin Kaepernick assessed the team's RB committee after the esteemed Frank Gore moved to Indy, the first name he uttered was Hunter's. "We have Kendall coming back, who a lot of people forget about," Kaepernick said. "Carlos (Hyde) had a great rookie year for us, and we'll probably be using him a lot more this year. We've brought Reggie (Bush) in who's another great weapon on offense. (Gore will) be missed, but we also have people who are more than capable of filling that void. ..." Hyde is first in line to play the power-back role in the 49ers offense, with Bush and Hunter serving as the pass-catching, shifty combo in the backfield. As NFL.com suggests, if Hunter is fully healthy come September, he'll be a solid weapon on third downs and in passing situations for Kaepernick.