49ers’ Jordan Mason calls out media after his postgame quote sparked controversy

San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason on Monday had the best game of his career in Week 1 against the New York Jets. But one seemingly innocuous quote may have spoiled his big night.

Mason was the breakout star of the 49ers’ 32-19 win over the Jets at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. Mason’s standout performance led to him being interviewed on the “Monday Night Football” broadcast after the game.

During said interview, Mason revealed he was informed that he was starting over the injured Christian McCaffrey “on Friday.” That came in contrast to most reports, which indicated that McCaffrey was a game-time decision who was ruled out just before kickoff.

Mason didn’t look too happy to speak to reporters during his postgame press conference. He was again asked when he was told that he would start in place of McCaffrey. A somber Mason responded with a non-answer and asked to skip the question entirely.

“That question right there,” said Mason. “That’s why I don’t really like talking to the media. Cause you say one thing wrong, and then, you know. Just skip that question.”

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

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan cleared things up during his own press conference. The veteran coach said that he “never” told Mason that he was going to start but rather just reminded him to “be ready a bunch” because he would likely have an increased workload.

Shanahan pinned the confusion to running backs coach Bobby Turner possibly telling Mason that he would start in order to fire him up. Shanahan also assured reporters that McCaffrey was a true game-time decision.

It’s possible that the 49ers decided McCaffrey wasn’t going to start in Week 1 well before Monday’s game. It just wouldn’t have done them any good to let the Jets know that beforehand. But of course, doing so would have the 49ers in trouble for violating the NFL’s injury reporting rules.

Mason did his best McCaffrey impression against the Jets. The third-year pro rushed for a career-high 147 yards with a touchdown on 28 carries. He had never even tallied more than 69 yards prior to Monday’s outing.