Jordan Mason Admits Niners Failed To Disclose Full Extent of Christian McCaffrey's Injury
Get ready because the fines are about to make their descent from the NFL's league offices onto San Clara.
San Francisco 49ers running back and undrafted free agent Jordan Mason was the talk of Monday Night Football for one great reason as well as a very bad one.
Mason got the call on Monday to fill in for superstar runner Christian McCaffrey — moments before taking on the New York Jets in Week 1.
The injury news shocked CMC's fans and fantasy managers. McCaffrey had been listed as questionable, and the Niners' lack of updates suggested that the three-time Pro Bowler would be healthy enough to play.
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 09: Running back Jordan Mason #24 of the San Francisco 49ers runs for a first down against safety Tony Adams #22 of the New York Jets during the fourth quarter at Levi's Stadium on September 09, 2024 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
Nonetheless, Jordan Mason dazzled in his debut to help SF win.
The third-year runner out of Georgia Tech impressed in his starting role, racking up 28 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown.
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After San Fran defeated the New York Jets, 32-19 (Scorigami), ESPN's Lisa Salters asked Mason about his preparation before unexpectedly being chosen on Monday to start in place of the injured McCaffrey.
In what appeared to be an inadvertent slip of the tongue, Mason revealed that the Niners staff informed him of his starting role as early as Friday, which violates the league's guidelines on managing injury reports.
Ouch.
WATCH:
NFL teams are required to report injuries accurately and promptly. The Niners apparently had different plans when it came to McCaffrey. They were (seemingly) hoping to stump the Jets' defensive game plan by failing to disclose that their best offensive player would be sitting.
The league's rules state that each NFL team must submit its Practice Report and its Game Status Report no later than 4 p.m. New York time on Fridays before gamedays.
If Mason was told he would start on Friday, then CMC's questionable status on the Niners' report is a real head-scratcher.
The plan may have worked for SF, but everyone else was distraught by the team's silence about CMC's injury.
Doing some damage control after the game, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said that Mason's comments were inaccurate, saying that the coaching staff alerted Mason of a possible uptick in workload heading into the primetime game.
"He didn't know for sure he was (starting) until today," Shanahan said after the win.
Sure, Jan…
Hearts were broken, and parlays crashed in the name of the inactive CMC.
The NFL's response, in the form of an investigation, is sure to come.
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