Elijah Mitchell activated off IR for Week 18 vs. Cardinals

San Francisco 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell has missed a bulk of the 2022 season with a knee injury. Suffering a sprained MCL against the Bears in their season opener, he missed the next two months before returning for their Week 10 showdown against the Chargers. He would only be back for three games before another knee injury took him out of action throughout the holiday season.

With the 49ers set to host the Arizona Cardinals in their Week 18 season finale this Sunday, we’ll take a look at the status of the second-year running back.

Elijah Mitchell injury updates

Saturday, January 7 update — Elijah Mitchell has been officially activated from I.R. and will play in Week 18 vs. the Cardinals. This will likely be a game for Mitchell to get his feet wet before diving into the playoffs.

Friday, January 6 update — 49ers GM John Lynch said in a regular radio interview show that he expects Mitchell to play in Sunday’s regular season finale.

Thursday, January 5 update — Elijah Mitchell returned to practice this week and on Thursday, head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed that he will be activated off I.R. and in action for Sunday’s game. This is a welcome return for San Francisco as the team is still in the mix for the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

Fantasy football advice

If you’re in a league that is still going this week, Mitchell might be a solid Flex option. They’re going to want to re-incorporate him back into the offense and he might get a good amount of touches even coming off a knee injury.