NFL rumors: Washington to sign Mark Sanchez; Colin Kaepernick still unsigned

Editor's note: The 49ers mark a break of 2-8 against 8. This is part of a series that recaps the top 10 games with an eye on the future. In this episode, what the 49ers have done well since the beginning of the season.

While the 49ers only had two wins this season, some things went well. The emergence of Matt Breida as a leader is one of them.

The non-recruited second year professional has demonstrated his tenacity. He battled an ankle injury for several weeks while remaining productive. He has also solidified a future on the offense.

49ers' coach, Kyle Shanahan, said he had anticipated Brenda and Jerick McKinnon as a tandem since before the offseason, and that this will remain the plan for 2019.

"I've been considering it this year," Shanahan said. "So that will not change next year."

Breida collected 632 yards on 113 runs, giving her 5.6 yards per race so far. While his 8.4 yards per run led the league to the second week, he currently ranks ninth.

The 23-year-old was not also known as a receiver at Georgia Southern, where he had 11 assists for 156 yards in three seasons. Since he became Niner, he has been working on his reception ability and Shanahan has found some interesting and productive ways to use it.

Breida has 15 receptions for 124 yards until the 10th week and 36 catches for 304 yards in 49er. Shanahan explained how Breida had been striving to better receive.

"He worked a lot on it," Shanahan said. "Breida worked on everything. Breida, I just told our team the other day, and we have a lot of hard working guys, I think all of our guys work hard. But in terms of bringing it to a whole new level, Breida and [George] Kittle showed that it was the first day of the OTAs.

It's hardly surprising that Breida and Kittle have excelled this season with their "extra credit" work.

"They were just pretty obsessive in everything they did," Shanahan said. "Every little detail of their game has been improved in many areas. And Breida at the passing game, it was not our # 1 goal last year. And with Jet [McKinnon] down this year, Breida has more possibilities. He worked a lot during the off-season to be ready for these opportunities. "