49ers running back Christian McCaffrey’s absence from “Monday Night Football” came as a shock to many fans, but not his teammates.
Backup running back Jordan Mason revealed to ESPN’s Lisa Salters after the game that he had been informed of his starting role as early as Friday.
“When did I find out? Maybe Friday night,” Mason said after the game.
McCaffrey was expected to play, according to reports in the lead-up to the game, as he recovered from an early August calf issue.
Then on Monday night, about 90 minutes before kickoff, it was suddenly reported that McCaffrey would be inactive.
If Mason was really told that McCaffrey wouldn’t be starting on Friday, the 49ers would be subject to fines and punishment by the league office for concealing an injury.
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan vehemently denied Mason’s comments immediately following the game.
“I never told Jordan he was going to start,” Shanahan said after the game. “I told him he had to be ready a bunch, but it might’ve been Bobby [Turner] or somebody trying to pump him up. He knew he was going to have to play a lot, it wasn’t going to be like usual.”
Reporters asked Mason during the postgame media availability when he was told that McCaffrey would be sitting against the Jets.
“That question right there is why I’m mad, that’s why I don’t like really talking to media because if you say one thing wrong,.. and you know… we’ll skip that question,” Mason said.
Mason bowled over an overmatched Jets defense during the game, carrying the ball 28 times for 147 yards and a touchdown while also catching his lone target for six yards.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter also reported just prior to game time on Monday that McCaffrey’s calf issue tightened up on him on Friday, and he’s not just at risk of missing Week 1 but also sitting Week 2 against the Vikings.
“Friday, Christian McCaffrey pulled himself out of practice,” Schefter said. “They were not overly concerned, they did not think it was a big deal, they thought and expected that he would be able to go tonight.
“The issue was he came in today for treatment and the calf still was tight. Now let’s keep in mind he basically didn’t practice all summer long it was not just a calf but it was also his Achilles so you have two issues here. They decided, in the interest of a long season, to hold him out tonight.
“Not only is Christian McCaffrey out tonight, but there is also a real chance that he is not going to play on Sunday either. They play at Minnesota on turf on a shorter week… He’s inactive tonight and it looks like a really strong possibility he will not play Sunday either.
San Francisco fared fine without him in Week 1, snagging a 32-19 win over the Jets, and should be massive favorites over the Vikings regardless of who starts at running back.
