Around one hour prior to Monday night's season opener, arguably the best player in the NFL, San Francisco 49ers star running back Christian McCaffrey was ruled out with a calf injury vs. the New York Jets.
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That is to say, those who partake in sports betting and fantasy football found themselves being shocked by the news, being forced to make last minute adjustments.
As a result, the team's backup running back Jordan Mason took over in CMC's absence, and put on a dazzling performance himself. The third year player rushed 28 times for 147 yards and a touchdown in the 32-19 victory.
Getty (photo by Thearon W. Henderson)
Getty (photo by Thearon W. Henderson)
During the postgame interview, Mason was asked by the reporter, "When did you find out that you were going to be starting?"
"When did I find out?" Mason responded, while contemplating if he should say the truth. "Maybe, Friday, Friday night, something like that."
“When did I find out? Maybe Friday?” - Jordan Mason on when he found out he would be starting.
I bet there’s a few bettors who wish they had that info on Friday 👀
pic.twitter.com/8TKjGjObIP— Covers (@Covers) September 10, 2024
Considering that McCaffrey is the first overall draft pick in most fantasy football leagues, him sitting out caused a big problem for those whose week 1 matchups were supposed to be decided in the MNF game. With this in mind, this has outraged NFL fans for they were not given a heads up to set their lineups in advance, in order to plan accordingly.
Christian McCaffery owner listening to Jordan Mason’s post game interview pic.twitter.com/y1iFRSSSds
— ScottTSU4 (@ScottTSU4) September 10, 2024
It was reported afterwards that CMC came out of practice on Friday after suffering a setback with an apparent calf strain injury, which he has been dealing with for awhile now. All in all, not revealing this right away may have been done by the 49ers for strategic purposes, as this made the Jets game plan for McCaffrey, who evidently was never going to play.
Christian McCaffrey -
“He pulled himself out of practice on Friday”. Presumably, CMC had a minor setback on Friday and it wasn’t reported.
Schefter also says “there’s a chance he doesn’t play next week” too.
Was curious if a setback had occurred.
pic.twitter.com/j6iMtLPYYv— Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept) September 10, 2024
In view of this, everyone had been bamboozled, as the narrative leading up to the season opener was that CMC planned to suit up, so Mason letting the cat out of the bag certainly contradicted what was initially understood.
Christian McCaffrey reportedly planned to play, but felt something off regarding his calf in pregame warmups. He is OUT
My note from the DD injury pod:
“McCaffrey is one of those guys who’s hypersensitive to his body, and he usually doesn’t play if somethings wrong.”🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃 pic.twitter.com/BXhuVs5A4l
— Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept) September 9, 2024
Following Mason's remarks, head coach Kyle Shanahan was pressed on this issue, and the statement he provided denied what was said by his player, seemingly saying it's all a big misunderstanding.
"I never told Jordan that he was gonna start," Shanahan said.
#49ers RB Jordan Mason said during his postgame interview on the ESPN broadcast he was told he was starting Friday night. Kyle Shanahan said that wasn’t the case and only told him he’d likely have to play a bunch: “He didn’t know for sure he was (starting) until today.”
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) September 10, 2024
Jordan Mason was upset during the postgame press conference
After the game he told reporters that he was told he was going to start on Friday.
Kyle Shanahan was asked about this and said that this wasn’t true.
This was Mason after all of that: https://t.co/UA4yAuMzQp pic.twitter.com/zsApKlYOIv
— Kevin Krueger (@kevinkruegs) September 10, 2024
After the initial on-the-field interview, in view of the PR nightmare, it appeared Mason's demeanor was off. With attention to this, while at the postgame press conference podium, the 25-year-old was asked the same question once again, "When did you find out that you would be in the starting lineup?"
Mason responded, "That question right there is why I'm mad. That's why I don't really like talking to media, cause you say one thing wrong... I don't know. Just skip that question."
🚨BREAKING: #49ers running back Jordan Mason says he found out from the team that he would be starting on FRIDAY
The #NFL WILL BE INVESTIGATING THIS, being that is mandatory for teams to report when players statuses change like Christian McCaffrey’s did👀pic.twitter.com/6IyAAxV02O
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) September 10, 2024
Ultimately, the NFL may look into the 49ers not being fully transparent with injury reports, and unfortunately Mason may be the one to blame.
Jordan Mason, after Shanahan watches the post-game interview pic.twitter.com/qVZTjjG7CL
— GoldBoys.com (@GoldBoysSupport) September 10, 2024
Coming into tonight's game, the undrafted rookie out of Georgia Tech had already impressed in limited opportunities, as Mason had 83 carries for 464 yards (5.6 yards per carry) and four touchdowns across two NFL seasons.
Filling in Monday night for Christian McCaffrey, 49ers RB Jordan Mason finished with 28 carries for 147 yds and a touchdown. And he had a message for McCaffrey: pic.twitter.com/wBYGlwkNK3
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 10, 2024
Moving forward, Mason may continue to see more of a workload, as CMC's status heading into week 2 (vs. the Minnesota Vikings) also looks to be in jeopardy, according to Adam Schefter.
"He was always ready for his opportunity."
Trent Williams details how Jordan Mason prepared for his breakout showing 😤 pic.twitter.com/715JLazHLM
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) September 10, 2024
Related: Christian McCaffrey Announced As New Cover Of Madden 25
