Losing a three-time All-Pro and reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year always will be a major blow to any team, even one as deep as the 49ers.
Running back Jordan Mason has more than stepped up in place of Christian McCaffrey, who hasn’t played a snap yet in the 2024 NFL season and remains sidelined with Achilles tendinitis.
Mason’s 324 rushing yards rank second behind only Philadelphia Eagles star running back Saquon Barkley (351 yards), and Mason already has 118 more rushing yards than he did all of last season. The third-year pro also has 16 rushing first downs through three games, which places him behind only the New Orleans Saints' Alvin Kamara.
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If there’s one area the 49ers are missing McCaffrey most, it’s third down. That’s where he truly shines above anybody else in the rest of the NFL as quarterback Brock Purdy’s ultimate security blanket. Whether it’s running the ball or being utilized as a pass-catcher, coach Kyle Shanahan knows McCaffrey is the ultimate luxury when his team’s offense has its back against the wall.
“I feel it’s been as easy of football as I’ve had in my 20 years,” Shanahan told reporters Friday at Levi’s Stadium. “It’s a very good bonus to have a really good third-down back. Just situationally, what it does on third down, what it does in the red zone, to me has as big of an effect on anything that I’ve experienced.”
The 49ers rank 10th in the NFL with a 41.2 third-down conversion percentage, but that number has dropped to 38.1 the last two games, both being losses on the road. When McCaffrey was an unstoppable force in his first full season playing for Shanahan last year, they finished fourth in the NFL with a 47.5 third-down conversion percentage, behind only the Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills.
“You want guys who are serviceable at it and can do a good job, and all our guys do, but Christian’s on a whole other level with that aspect,” Shanahan said.
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While Mason has been one of the most efficient ball carriers in football, he simply isn’t the same pass-catching threat that McCaffrey is. Then again, who is at the running back position?
Mason has caught all four of his targets this season for a total of 20 yards, an average of 5.0 yards per reception. Three of his receptions have turned into first downs, but Mason doesn’t have a single receiving touchdown in his career. McCaffrey caught a career-high seven touchdowns, turned 31 catches into first downs and averaged 8.7 yards per reception in 2023.
Do-it-all fullback Kyle Juszczyk already has six receptions for 65 yards and has two first downs as a receiver, but no other running back on the roster has a single reception. Rookie Isaac Guerendo impressed last week with five carries for 19 yards and could see more chances as the 49ers wait for McCaffrey’s hopeful return.
“I see all the guys kind of the same,” Shanahan said. “They all can beat people in routes, they all have good hands and none of them I don’t trust in protection. Juice probably being the most, but he also has great hands and is really good at check downs and getting up the field. I feel the same way about JP.
“Christian’s just different in that aspect, and that’s why you always want him out there on third down.”
The 49ers won’t have McCaffrey on the field against the New England Patriots on Sunday at Levi's Stadium, but only three teams – the 49ers themselves, the Los Angeles Rams and Washington Commanders – have allowed a higher third-down conversion percentage than the Patriots’ defense this season.
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