As someone who covers professional football for a living, I must admit that a lot of it feels formulaic. It’s almost like it follows a boring, inescapable script every season.
A great quarterback and team will seemingly win the Super Bowl each year. The Chicago Bears will never have stellar quarterback play (I’m kidding, Bears fans). And a plucky non-marquee squad will enjoy above-average success for a little while before inevitably and likely falling back to Earth.
Underdog, unknown NFL players are a welcome deviation from that script.
They’re fresh and relatable. In many cases, they’re realizing their lifelong dreams. It’s always, always fantastic to watch these guys give the sport an injection of energy.
When former undrafted free agent Jordan Mason ran for 147 yards and a touchdown on Monday night for the San Francisco 49ers — while filling in for injured MVP-caliber teammate Christian McCaffrey — I thought the discussion afterward would be a resounding celebration. I thought everyone would fixate on the no-name guy enjoying the finest day of his budding professional career.
Boy, was I so wrong and so naive.
Instead of uplifting Mason and talking about everything he endured to shine for one of the NFL’s top teams, it felt like all anyone could talk about was the 49ers’ potentially duplicitous injury reporting. Why, you ask?
Because of how much McCaffrey’s late scratch apparently hurt fantasy football managers and bettors:
Um Jordan Mason just said he found out he was starting Friday night……..
— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) September 10, 2024
Instead of letting Mason enjoy a treasured moment for himself and his loved ones, he got unwittingly caught up in a silly tailspin where neither overzealous fantasy players and bettors nor the 49ers had his back.
And I gotta say — that makes me livid:
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
This situation with Mason makes me wonder how we got here.
Rooting for a breakout player is one of the most enjoyable things about following NFL football. About any sport, really. Everyone can relate to a person persevering through adversity and so many roadblocks to achieve something spectacular. Young men like Mason overcome so much just to excel even once in front of millions of people. They give us an evergreen example of where good old-fashioned tenacity and a positive attitude can take you in life.
But because Mason started for the 49ers under bizarre circumstances, at the late expense of one of the NFL’s biggest names like McCaffrey — and any fantasy players or bettors who were invested in his success — those heartwarming undertones are, for the most part, ignored.
I’m sorry, y’all. I can’t vibe with a significant part of sports culture that not only doesn’t always celebrate breakout athletes but also actively encourages people to sometimes root against them. That’s not healthy for the game. It’s not how we should be watching the NFL or any sport because it inherently goes against the idea of human competition and unwavering resolve.
I know playing fantasy and betting money on aspects of games can be fun and engaging. I get it. But this is a bridge way too far for me.
My heart breaks for Mason that the first thing he had to talk about after having the game of his life was a tricky injury report situation he had nothing to do with. My blood boils over 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan likely admonishing Mason for not preparing a perfect answer to reporters’ injury questions instead of simply saying how awesome he was. My stomach churns over segments of the fantasy and betting community forgetting what they’re supposed to be watching and enjoying with the NFL first and foremost — dynamic human beings accomplishing absurd athletic feats with so much pressure weighing on their shoulders.
You know what?
Shoutout to Jordan Mason for substituting for one of the NFL’s premier superstars and barely missing a beat in his first career start. A guy almost no one outside of the 49ers knew even existed before Monday night. Good for him, man. Here’s hoping he’ll continue enjoying more success over the rest of the season if he starts getting consistent carries. He’s earned that trust and more.
It shouldn’t have to be said again. But I don’t think it was ever explicitly stated in the first place.
