Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. Have you seen some stuff about 49ers running back Jordan Mason and his revelation about when he knew he’d start vs. the Jets on Monday? And you’re very confused about that whole thing? Don’t worry. We’re here to help.
Let’s just dive right in: Jordan Mason had a huge night for the San Francisco 49ers in the place of the injured Christian McCaffrey, but it was what he did after torching the New York Jets that made headlines.
Let’s unravel it all for you so you get it:
What did Jordan Mason say about Christian McCaffrey and his injury status?
After the game, ESPN’s Lisa Salters asked Mason when he knew he’d start for the team.
“Maybe … Friday, Friday night. Something like that.” he responded. It wasn’t a fully certain answer, but that was what he said.
@49ers need to be investigated. @NFL Jordan Mason just admitted he knew he was starting Friday night while they were telling others that McCaffery was playing. pic.twitter.com/ilnBduCcyN
— Smjbones (@smjbones1) September 10, 2024
Why is it a problem if he said that he knew on Friday that he would start in place of McCaffrey?
Because the Niners made McCaffrey inactive on Monday night before the game, something that surprised a lot of people.
Did Kyle Shanahan confirm this?
No. He said he told Mason to be ready and McCaffrey had some trouble with his injury during the week and he didn’t feel great on Monday.
#49ers HC Kyle Shanahan says he didn’t tell Jordan Mason on Friday that Mason would be starting tonight https://t.co/E6EkXB8rh6 pic.twitter.com/S0dXr7iT8N
— The Coachspeak Index (@CoachspeakIndex) September 10, 2024
How did Mason respond after the game?
He wasn’t happy with reporters.
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
Why is this a problem for Jordan Mason and the 49ers?
This is where it gets complicated. McCaffrey was listed as questionable on Saturday after practicing during the week, and there are folks wondering if that hid that he was actually more like doubtful and should have been listed as such.
And does that violate the NFL’s rules about injury reporting? That’s where I imagine the league will look into all of this, because it’s possible the franchise gets fined if personnel hid McCaffrey’s status in some way.
What are the NFL rules about reporting injuries?
The Practice Report provides clubs and fans with an accurate description of a player’s injury status and how much he participated in practice during the week. If any player has a significant or noteworthy injury, it must be listed on the practice report, even if he fully participates in practice and the team expects that he will play in the team’s next game. This is especially important for key players whose injuries may be covered extensively by the media.
The Game Status Report provides clubs and fans with an accurate description of a player’s availability for the club’s next game. Teams must notify the league, their opponent, local and national media, and the league’s broadcast partners of the status of their injured players by 4 p.m. ET the day before their next scheduled game.
The In-Game Injury Report requires club personnel to report in-game injury information factually and accurately as soon as it is available. In-game injury updates must be disseminated to the broadcast partner, the media and the fans in the stadium at the same time. Clubs must post injury updates on the stadium video boards, scoreboards or ribbon boards so fans at NFL games are also informed.
Here’s the part that the league might cite:
The policy requires that teams provide credible, accurate and specific information about injured players to the league office, their opponents, local and national media, and the league’s broadcast partners each week during the regular season and postseason.
