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San Francisco 49ers Christian McCaffrey
September 10, 2024 By  NFL, San Francisco 49ers

San Francisco 49ers: Twitter Calls Christian McCaffrey “A System Running Back” After Jordan Mason’s Performance

Just a little bit over an hour before kickoff between the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Jets on Monday night, the 49ers ruled out running back Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey is dealing with a calf and an Achilles injury.

San Francisco 49ersChristian McCaffrey
Sep 9, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason (center left) reacts after a run against New York Jets safety Chuck Clark (on ground) during the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Jordan Mason got the start for San Francisco. Mason rushed for 147 yards on 28 carries and a touchdown in a 32-19 win for the 49ers over the New York Jets. It is also possible that Christian McCaffrey will not play next week as well for San Francisco on the road against the Minnesota Vikings.

Fans Call San Francisco 49ers Running Back Christian McCaffrey “A System Running Buck” After Jordan Mason’s Big Game

San Francisco 49ersChristian McCaffrey
Sep 9, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) watches from the sideline due to injury during the second quarter against the New York Jets at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images

To no surprise, many crazy fans on Twitter were watching the New York Jets and the San Francisco 49ers. Many thought with McCaffrey out and Jordan Mason playing well for San Francisco, many keyboard warriors were thinking that Christian McCaffrey was just “A System Running Back.” This is what some NFL fans had to say about it:

What is impressive is that Jordan Mason stepped up in place of Christian McCaffrey and played well against a very good New York Jets defense. It could be a Week 1 overreaction as well with McCaffrey being “A System Running Back.” If he doesn’t play in Week 2 against the Vikings and if Mason plays well again, it may grow louder those talks from the fans.

McCaffrey Was Best Player On Offense Last Season Not Named Patrick Mahomes

San Francisco 49ersChristian McCaffrey
Sep 9, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) watches from the sideline due to injury during the second quarter against the New York Jets at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images

Other than quarterback Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs and Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens, Christian McCaffrey may have been the best player in the NFL a season ago for the 49ers. He played in 16 games for San Francisco. McCaffrey rushed for 1,459 yards on 272 carries and 14 touchdowns, along with averaging 5.4 yards per carry.

He also caught 67 passes for 564 yards receiving and seven touchdowns, along with averaging 8.4 yards per catch. McCaffrey was targeted 83 times. Quarterback Brock Purdy was also in the MVP conversation a season ago. This is one of the best offenses in the NFL because of head coach Kyle Shanahan. 

Calling McCaffrey “A System Running Back” just because of Jordan Mason’s big night against the New York Jets is preposterous. When McCaffrey played for the Carolina Panthers, he had at least two seasons of over 1,000 yards rushing. That take needs to be put to bed already.

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About Glenn Kaplan

Glenn Kaplan is a sports writer covering all things NFC East related and SEC related on Gridiron Heroics, mainly the New York Giants. He also writes for Wisconsin Sports Heroics.

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