San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey walks on the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024.

With one slip of the tongue, the big night of San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason went from celebration to controversy.

Mason had the game of his life against the New York Jets on Monday, rushing for 147 yards and a touchdown in the 32-19 win, while given the herculean task of replacing Christian McCaffrey, the reigning offensive player of the year who was shockingly ruled out of the season opener 90 minutes before kickoff. The third-year back’s performance was enough to earn him the postgame interview with ESPN, but when reporter Lisa Salters asked Mason when he knew he’d be the starter, he replied, “Maybe Friday, Friday night. Something like that.”

This comment raised more than a few eyebrows. How could Mason have known Friday he was starting if the general public didn’t know he’d be the starter until late Monday afternoon? Why did Christian McCaffrey give reporters a succinct “No” when asked Friday after practice if he had any doubts about playing in Monday’s game? Did the 49ers break some sort of rule to keep this information from everyone?

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The short answer........

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