SANTA CLARA – Starting the season with a three-and-out offensive series, and without Christian McCaffrey in uniform, could have been a harbinger of doom to officially christen the 49ers’ Super Bowl-loss hangover.
Instead, the 49ers scored on their next eight possessions, all while their defense muted Aaron Rodgers’ ballyhooed comeback and the New York Jets’ rushing attack for a 32-19 win at soldout Levi’s Stadium.
Yes, the reigning NFC champions are a stick-your-chest-out 1-0, with five long months to go for another shot at a Super Bowl the 49ers last won 30 years ago. But first, they must dissect Monday night’s opening act and do so quickly, for a Sunday game awaits in Minnesota where they last won in 1992.
Of all the headaches leading up to this opener — from contract disputes with Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams through the preseason, to the death-defying shooting of first-round pick Ricky Pearsall on a Union Square street — the 49ers had one more twist to offer before kickoff. McCaffrey, last year’s NFL rushing champion and the AP Offensive Player of the Year, was a surprising scratch because of calf and Achilles issues stretching back at least a month.
“We thought it would be smart to keep him out and I’m glad we did,” said Shanahan, noting that McCaffrey’s calf soreness was “too much today” and could remain a lingering issue.
Running back Jordan Mason responded with 147 yards in the first start of his three-year career and Deebo Samuel reprised his “wide back” role with eight carries to spell Mason in the backfield. This marked the first of Brock Purdy’s 28 career starts without McCaffrey in the lineup dating back to 2022.
“Obviously Christian is the best in the league at running back and what he does. Not to take anything away from him, but J.P. did a good job filling his void and allowing us to run our offense,” Purdy said.
“Not having Christian is huge but we have a team that really commits to running the ball, and we have 10 guys who’ll block whoever the running back is,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan added.
Shanahan did not rule out McCaffrey for Sunday’s game at Minnesota’s artificial surface and said it will depend on the running back’s health.
McCaffrey’s absence Monday was most noticeable in the scoring department as the 49ers settled for six field goals on six attempts from Jake Moody. Last season, McCaffrey not only led the NFL in rushing but his 21 touchdowns tied for the league lead and he matched an NFL record touchdown streak by scoring a touchdown in 17 straight games.
Mason proved he could find the end zone, too. Midway through the third quarter, he scored on a 5-yard run with the help of a George Kittle block to cap a 70-yard drive and make it a 23-7 lead. Setting up that touchdown was Kyle Juszczyk’s 34-yard reception to the Jets’ 3-yard line, as well as third-down conversions on a Jauan Jennings catch and a Mason run.
“He runs like he always does: He breaks tackles and usually gets more (yards) than we block for,” Shanahan said.
The 49ers defense followed with Deommodore Lenoir breaking up a Rodgers’ pass and Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles intercepting it, all of which led to Moody’s fourth and longest field goal (53 yards) to push the lead to 26-7.
By then, there was no denying the 49ers’ positive spirits on a night the organization paid homage to others via a halftime ceremony commemorating Frank Gore’s 49ers Hall of Fame enshrinement and Pearsall’s photo op with the first responders who rushed to his aid after he was shot nine days earlier by an attempted robber in Union Square.
Not so great was the fact that Williams walked with a trainer to the locker room with 9:43 remaining, not long after left guard Aaron Banks exited with a calf issue. Williams emerged a few minutes later, imploring the crowd to cheer on the closing minutes, which saw the Jets pull Rodgers (13-of-21, 167 yards, one touchdown, one interception) in favor of Tyrod Taylor.
By then, the 49ers had a 16-point lead to protect, with the barrage of field goals serving as a cruel reminder of their Super Bowl shortcomings in that overtime loss to Kansas City.
The 49ers’ first touchdown of the season, a 2-yard touchdown run by Samuel, put them ahead for good, 13-7 with 6:54 until halftime. The 49ers bullied their way down the field on that 12-play, 67-yard drive mostly by running the ball, but also with a 22-yard catch by Jauan Jennings into the red zone.
They had been down 7-6 when Leonard Floyd’s first sack as a 49er came on third down. It was Floyd’s 11th career sack of Rodgers, second only to South Bay product Jared Allen’s 15 1/2. It also came with Nick Bosa blasting past Jets left tackle Tyron Smith, who was called for a holding penalty.
Another early defensive highlight came when Fred Warner’s right fist punched the ball from Breece Hall’s grasp and Maliek Collins recovered the fumble. That turnover led to the 49ers’ first points of the season: Jake Moody’s 46-yard field goal, which followed a third-down incompletion in which Purdy was pressured by former 49ers first-round pick Javon Kinlaw.
The 49ers’ 3-0 lead was erased once Hall scored on a 3-yard run past defensive backs Charvarius Ward, Deommodore Lenoir and George Odum. All five of the Jets’ first downs in the first half came on their 70-yard touchdown drive, which was kept alive thrice by Rodgers completing third-down passes to Garrett Wilson.
Ten days after signing his hard-sought contract extension, Aiyuk had just one catch (14 yards) in the first half, and he had a potential 14-yard touchdown catch fall through his hands 13 seconds before halftime. He came through with a 14-yard third-down conversion in the fourth quarter to set up Moody’s fifth field goal and extend the lead to 29-13.
The 49ers’ only possession that didn’t yield points after their opening 3-and-out: a one-snap series, with Brandon Allen taking a knee to kill the final seconds for the first of seemingly many wins.
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