There are plenty of revolving doors in the San Francisco 49ers team facility these days, but one that has always existed is the running back position. Coming from a father that made Oladis Gary and Mike Anderson relevant once upon a time, Kyle Shanahan has ushered backs in and out during his eight seasons as head coach almost annually pounding on the table for someone even after he traded for Christian McCaffrey.
Last season, that carousel continued. McCaffrey missed most of the season with a calf and achilles injury then suffered a PCL strain in his right knee that ended the 2024 campaign. Names like Isaac Guerendo and Patrick Taylor got some run in the backfield, but the biggest standout of them all is starting over with a new team in 2025 and is already thriving during the preseason.
Former 49ers RB Jordan Mason Could Have Big Role with Vikings This Season
The 49ers had many high-profile departures this season but one of them was the trade that sent Jordan Mason to the Minnesota Vikings. Mason was an unknown at the start of the season but emerged as a Week 1 starter and became San Francisco’s leading rusher with 789 yards and three touchdowns on 153 carries. At age 26, Mason figured to be entering his prime, but the 49ers flipped him to Minnesota in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick.
The Vikings immediately signed Mason to a two-year, $10.5 million contract and when a team does that, the first instinct is to scream “FANTASY FOOTBALL ALERT!” But while Mason is behind Aaron Jones for now, he could be more than an ascending backup.
Minnesota has big plans for the running game as they break in first-year starter J.J. McCarthy. While many are wondering why the Vikings would turn down Aaron Rodgers for someone that hasn’t played a down in the NFL, part of the reasoning is the supporting cast they’ve put around him. ESPN’s Kevin Seifert even called the Vikings backfield plans as one of the “worst kept secrets” as they look to use a split “much closer to 50-50” than what head coach Kevin O’Connell has used in the past.
That might not be enough for fantasy football players to fall over each other in an auction draft. But it could be enough to help Mason continue his trajectory this preseason. Mason racked up 20 yards on four carries in the Vikings’ preseason opener against the Houston Texans and gives Minnesota a powerful back they haven’t had in a while. Seifert also noted that Mason impressed the Vikings with his receiving skills this spring and have visions of using him and Jones in the backfield.
It’s not the performance that Zavier Scott had (7 carries, 40 yards) on Saturday, but it shows what Mason could do in that offense. With Guerendo and Jordan James already nursing injuries, keeping Mason may have been a good idea even if they main objectives were to clear money for Brock Purdy’s massive contract.