Why Jordan Mason Is A Sneaky Option In Week 3 Fantasy Leagues & DFS Contest

During the summer, the Minnesota Vikings' backfield was a popular handcuff for fantasy managers. Veteran Aaron Jones and first-year Viking Jordan Mason were drafted in very close proximity to each other. While Jones entered the season as the starter, many managers attached Mason to him with hopes of a succession plan, so to speak. For those who made that draft day decision to select both, or managers who passed on Jones and stashed Mason, the time could be right now for that to start paying dividends.

The Vikings are ready to FEED Jordan Mason 😈 pic.twitter.com/vEUaZETnSB
— Yahoo Fantasy Sports (@YahooFantasy) September 17, 2025

Aaron Jones on Injured Reserve with Hamstring Injury

After injuring his hamstring during Week 2, Jones was placed on the IR earlier in the week and will miss at least the next three games heading into Minnesota's bye week. This will clearly make the backfield belong to Mason for the next month, and this could be a light version of a Wally Pip scenario for those who enjoy a baseball reference.

Mason has his opportunity now to claim the lead running back job, and should he perform well across the next few games, he could be a major fantasy league-winning candidate that managers with the foresight to stash him have been hoping for.

Mason’s Career Yards Per Carry & Missed Tackle Forced Rate Impressive

Starting his career in San Francisco in 2022, last season was his breakout opportunity after Christian McCaffrey was injured prior to the start of the 2024 regular season. Mason started six games in his absence and saw action in 12, resulting in 789 rushing yards and three touchdowns.

He averaged 5.2 yards per carry in 2024, which is exactly his career mark across his 260 total attempts and 1,351 yards in 47 games played. So far in 2025, he is averaging 4.1 yards per carry and has 98 through two games on his 24 attempts. Another reason for excitement is his ability to force missed tackles, as he was the best in this metric in 2024, as per Next Gen Stats and via @vikingzfanpage on X.com.

https://x.com/vikingzfanpage/status/1968331772300816862

Mason a Perfect Week 3 DFS Play at Minimal Cost

Mason has shot up the rankings with the Jones IR news, and makes for a top 12 weekly league starter and a very solid DFS play Week 3. FantasyPros.com ranks him as the 12th running back in standard leagues and 15th in PPR formats.

In DFS leagues, he makes for an extremely economic play at costing just $5,300 in DraftKings contests. He could allow for heavier spending elsewhere and be a top-scoring running back for Week 3, especially with a soft matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals. So far in 2025, the Bengals' defense has given up the third-most fantasy points to running backs at 22.9 per game, allowing two rushing touchdowns and a reception score to backs through two weeks.

Looking ahead slightly, Mason and Minnesota will face the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 4, and their defensive unit has allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to running backs this season, with 21.0 so far. They have allowed the second-most rushing yards with 249 through the first two games of the season.

Mason's Preseason Fantasy Football Outlook

Fantasy on SI's Shawn Childs wrote in his 2025 fantasy preview, "Mason brings an early down profile with value in scoring and short-yardage situations. I could see him getting about 45% of their rushing attempts, giving Mason a chance at about 150 touches."

Childs added, in almost what was a gaze into a crystal ball, "Mason gets drafted to close to Jones to handcuff him, and the Vikings’ running backs averaged only 21.78 fantasy points per game in 2024. He needs Minnesota’s top back to go down early in the year to deliver RB2 fantasy stats."