Robert Turner Jr.
Running Backs, San Francisco 49ers (SF).
Quick Facts
- Role: Running Backs
- Team: San Francisco 49ers (SF)
- NFL experience: Not listed
- Reports to: Kyle Shanahan (Head Coach)
- Coaching tree: see Coaching Trees
Background
Robert Turner Jr. is in his ninth season as the 49ers running backs coach. He joined San Francisco after spending two seasons (2015-16) in the same capacity with the Atlanta Falcons. A veteran of 29 NFL seasons, Turner is responsible for overseeing three of the top nine rookie rushing seasons in the NFL since 1970 [Alfred Morris – 1,613 rushing yards in 2012 (fourth); Clinton Portis – 1,508 rushing yards in 2002 (seventh); Mike Anderson – 1,500 rushing yards in 2000 (eighth)].
In 2024, Turner led a running back group that featured RB Jordan Mason and rookie draft pick RB Isaac Guerendo. Mason registered career highs in carries (153), rushing yards (789) and tied his career high with three rushing touchdowns. Guerendo appeared in 16 games and made three starts, registering 84 rushing attempts for 420 yards and four touchdowns on the ground to go along with 15 receptions for 152 yards through the air. Turner also coached FB Kyle Juszczyk, who earned his third career Associated Press All-Pro honor (First-Team – 2022-23; Second-Team – 2024) and ninth-consecutive (2016-25) Pro Bowl selection, including eight straight as a member of the 49ers, after registering five carries for 26 yards and one touchdown on the ground to go along with 19 receptions for 200 yards and two touchdowns through the air.
The 2023 San Francisco 49ers finished with top-five marks in total offense (398.4), scoring offense (28.9), rushing yards per game (140.5) and passing yards per game (257.9). The 49ers offense registered 491 total points and 6,773 total yards in 2023, both of which were the second-highest single-season marks in franchise history. Turner Jr. once again coached RB Christian McCaffrey, who led the NFL in rushing yards (1,459), yards from scrimmage (2,023) and finished tied for the most total touchdowns (21). He became the first player since 1995 to lead the NFL in rushing yards after every week of an entire season and was named Associated Press Offensive Player of the Year, the
PFWA
Offensive Player of the Year, Associated Press First-Team All-Pro and selected to the Pro Bowl Games. FB Kyle Juszczyk was once again named to the Pro Bowl and finished the season with two receiving touchdowns.
In May of 2023, Turner was inducted into the Indiana Football Hall of Fame. Named a distinguished member "in recognition of his dedication and loyalty to, and excellence in the game of Indiana football," Turner was acknowledged for his long tenure at Indiana State University.
Turner spent the 2022 season as an assistant coach with San Francisco, working with the team's running backs. He tutored midseason acquisition RB Christian McCaffrey, who went on to rush for 746 yards and six touchdowns, add 52 receptions for 464 yards and four touchdowns, and earn a trip to the 2023 Pro Bowl. San Francisco's 20 rushing touchdowns on the season were the fifth-most in the NFL. Juszczyk also earned Pro Bowl honors after registering one touchdown each on the ground and through the air.
In 2021, Turner was the recipient of The PFWA's Paul "Dr. Z" Zimmerman Award given for lifetime achievement as an assistant coach in the NFL. The award is named for Zimmerman, who covered the NFL for 29 years as
Sports Illustrated's
lead pro football writer. That season, he coached rookie sixth-round draft selection RB Elijah Mitchell to team highs in rushing attempts (207) and rushing yards (963), setting the rookie franchise record for each category. Juszczyk was again named to the 2022 Pro Bowl.
In 2020, the 49ers rushed for 1,889 yards and 19 touchdowns on 437 carries. The 19 rushing touchdowns ranked tied for 10th in the NFL. RB Jeff Wilson Jr. led the team with a career-high 600 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 126 carries (4.8 avg.). RB Raheem Mostert added 104 carried for 521 yards and two touchdowns. Additionally, Juszczyk tallied 17 carries for 64 yards and two touchdowns on the ground while adding 19 receptions for 202 yards and four touchdowns en route to his fifth-consecutive Pro Bowl selection.
The 2019 San Francisco 49ers led the NFL with 23 rushing touchdowns and ranked second in rushing yards per game (144.1). The 49ers ground attack featured three players with 500-or-more rushing yards in a single season (Mostert – 772; RB Matt Breida – 623; RB Tevin Coleman – 544) for just the second time in franchise history (1954 - three players). In 1954, three of the four members of the "Million Dollar Backfield" had more than 500 rushing yards in Joe Perry (1,049), John Henry Johnson (681) and Hugh McElhenny (515). Juszczyk was selected to the Pro Bowl for the fourth-consecutive season. In the postseason, the 49ers averaged 204.0 rushing yards per game as Mostert led the way with 336 yards and five touchdowns on 36 carries (6.3 average).
In 2018, the 49ers rushed for 1,902 yards and seven touchdowns on 423 carries. The team's 118.9 rushing yards per game ranked 13th in the NFL and seventh in the NFC in 2018. RB Matt Breida led the team with 153 carries for 814 yards (5.3 average) and three touchdowns. His 5.3 average ranked fourth in the NFL in 2018 and was the highest rushing average by a 49ers running back (minimum 100 carries) since 2006 (RB Frank Gore – 5.4 average). Additionally, Juszczyk earned Pro Bowl honors for the third-consecutive season.
In 2017, the 49ers rushed for 1,662 yards and 15 touchdowns on 408 carries. San Francisco ranked tied for seventh in the NFL in both rushing touchdowns (15) and carries of 10-or-more yards (53). Juszczyk was named to the Pro Bowl for the