SANTA CLARA – As wonderfully storybook as Ricky Pearsall’s NFL debut should be Sunday, don’t overlook running back Jordan Mason’s magnitude in the 49ers’ star-laden offense.
Forced out of the 49ers’ Oct. 10 win in Seattle with a sprained left shoulder, Mason was limited in a non-contact role the first two days of practice this week before being a full participant Friday, along with Samuel (wrist).
Only wide receiver Jauan Jennings and kicker Jake Moody will miss Sunday’s showdown against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Mason was ready to, well, shoulder the blame if the 49ers blew a 20-point, second-half lead in Seattle once he left injured; they held on to win 36-24 on Thursday, Oct. 10.
“When I was on our sideline, I definitely felt that loss was going to be on me, because I went down,” Mason said Thursday at his locker. “Everything worked out for the best.”
The 49ers limited Mason’s workload in practice this week and put him in a no-contact jersey. Isaac Guerendo and Patrick Taylor Jr. are again on-call if Mason is hurting too much to play Sunday, as should be Deebo Samuel, who’s wrist injury last game also limited this week.
Mason left Seattle’s field for a locker room X-ray before halftime, then was permitted to come back, albeit for only one carry (9-yard run) before calling it a night. He said he wasn’t relieved that his X-ray revealed no fracture because “I always felt good about it.”
“When he went down it’s like, dang, that is pretty valuable for us in the run game,” Brock Purdy said. “We always have the next guy up and we’re ready to give the next guy a shot. … But we’re excited that he’s healed up and got some rest and ready for this one.”
When Mason exited last game, he did so with NFL-best 609 rushing yards through six games, a mark eclipsed Sunday by two-time rushing champion Derek Henry, who has 704 yards with Baltimore. Mason said his younger brother, James, keeps him abreast of that race – and all other “good and bad” said about him in this breakout season.
Christian McCaffrey led wire-to-wire last season to claim his first NFL rushing crown, and he openly sought that title because he considered it a reflection of the 49ers’ success. “I’m with Christian. If that’s what he says, I’m with him,” said Mason.
McCaffrey has yet to debut this season because of Achilles tendinitis, and a potential return would come after the Week 9 bye Nov. 3. General manager John Lynch, on KNBR 680-AM, said McCaffrey is doing “incredibly well, and it’s all about the ramp-up, to increasing the activity to make sure there is no setback. He’s on a good track with that. No timelines or anything.”
On Mason, Lynch was encouraged by his ability to practice this week, “but we’ve got to see that he gets to Sunday and feels confomrtable with contact and all that. But JP is tough and I’m betting on – I don’t bet, excuse me, NFL – but I’m saying JP will hopefully be out there for us.”
“He’s a physical runner, and obviously when the gaps and the seas part, that’s great for any running back, but with Jordan, it’s when the gap isn’t there he’s still going to push for another five, six yards or break a couple tackles,” Purdy said. “That’s the mark of a great running back in the NFL. That’s not easy.”
Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said Thursday of facing the 49ers: “All it takes is one misfit and any running back they put back there, but especially No. 24 has been doing a really good job of it, that’s what the system is built for.”
Linebacker Nick Bolton added Friday: “Mason’s done a great job. As the weeks progress, they keep adding more to his plate and get him more involved in the offense.”
Mason (No. 24) didn’t blush at that or other compliments he’s received, saying: “They don’t affect me at all. You never know if they’re telling the truth or lying, so you don’t listen.”
Not-so-nice things were surely said after Mason’s last carry at Levi’s Stadium. He fumbled on a first-and-goal run, and that first-career lost fumble was parlayed by the Arizona Cardinals into their game-winning touchdown drive.
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Mason’s physicality, however, remains admired and unmatched. “Guerendo did that. Patrick did that. They came in, they played physical,” Purdy said. “But obviously, you just love J.P.’s mentality because he does it every play.”
Lynch espoused “great confidence” in the 49ers’ other running backs behind Mason, going so far as to describe Guerendo’s ceiling as “incredibly high” with his combination of speed, power and improved vision.
49ERS HEALTH WATCH
Pearsall will come off the non-football-injury list Saturday and he’s technically listed as questionable for Sunday’s game until that transaction is done.
Anders Carlson will come up from the practice squad to serve as the 49ers’ third kicker in as many games. Kicker Matthew Wright (shoulder, back) will go on injured reserve, and Moody (ankle) is week-to-week, Shanahan said.
Defensive tackle Kevin Givens (groin) and cornerback Darrell Luter (pelvis) are questionable. Defensive tackles Maliek Collins (knee) and Jordan Elliott (knee) are off the injury list and fully expected to play.
CHIEFS INJURIES
The Chiefs listed wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster (hamstring) as questionable after being limited the past two days. They ruled out defensive end Mike Dana (pectoral) and fully cleared wide receiver Mecole Hardman (knee) and running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire (illness).
