Jordan Mason has a Golden Opportunity Ahead of 49ers-Seahawks Matchup
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Elijah Mitchell is out for the next couple of months with a sprained MCL.
The 49ers have to find production out of their running backs with him on the shelf. Last season was a bit of a struggle for the 49ers when Mitchell missed time. They were scrambling for running backs for a good few weeks stretch. This year is totally different from where they were when Mitchell was injured in 2021.
San Francisco has a running back who can take command of the depth chart. That player is undrafted free agent Jordan Mason. Kyle Shanahan has made it clear that there is competition right now behind Jeff Wilson Jr. who will get the start. Mason will be competing with Ty Davis-Price, and I fully expect Mason to beat him out. He already has the lead over Davis-Price. It was clear when Mason suited up in Week 1, while Davis-Price was a healthy scratch. So Mason should be good to go in Week 2.
A golden opportunity is presented in front of Mason when the 49ers face the Seahawks.
This is his chance to grab that opportunity and stake a claim that he is a player Shanahan should call upon. If he beats out Davis-Price to be the running back behind Wilson, then he is already riding some great momentum. All he needs to after that is prove he can get in the game and show that the moment isn't too big for him. That is something Shanahan looks for when he puts in a young player into the game. He did it with Mitchell last year in relief of the injured Raheem Mostert.
"You don't know about guys until they get this opportunity," Shanahan said. "And Elijah's rookie year, he missed about half of training camp. So we had a gut feeling that he could be as good as he's ended up being, but you don't totally know on the guy until they get in the heat of battle.
"And we were real worried going into that game that we wanted to keep Raheem healthy and he went down the second play and you don't really have a choice to wait and see, you have to see what he knows and what he doesn’t. And Elijah after that first game, showed that he had ability that he had shown in practice, but he showed the game wasn't too big for him."
There is no "wait and see" with Mason or Davis-Price. Mason is poised to sustain his lead over the third-round LSU prospect. He just needs to keep his demeanor in the game and ensure he his hitting the lanes without hesitation and with a ferocity to run over someone. All Mason needs is a few carries to go well for him, then I bet Shanahan starts running him more, especially if Wilson is struggling to muster efficiency. I just hope for Mason's sake that Shanahan isn't stubborn or afraid to give him a chance.
Mason's time is now. Will he be able to take advantage?
