Jordan Mason is making a strong case for 49ers MVP after first 4 weeks

The San Francisco 49ers came into 2024 a heavy favorite to return to not only the NFC Championship game for a fourth straight year, but to another Super Bowl as well.

At 2-2 over the first four weeks, however, the Niners look slightly different than how they viewed themselves in addition to where they were this time a season ago.

After going 5-0 to open up the season in 2023, the 49ers were viewed as a juggernaut in the conference.

They are not off to the same start this year.

Both running backs, Christian McCaffrey and Elijah Mitchell, are out due to injuries, with the latter ruled out for the full season already. First-round NFL Draft pick, wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, has yet to take the field, either.

Still, quarterback Brock Purdy is on pace to have a career year, and placekicker Jake Moody outscored San Francisco's opponent in Week 1 alone, 20 points to the New York Jets' 19 points.

The 49ers could brag about having one of the best offenses and defenses in the NFL last year. They had the Offensive Player of the Year and the league's leading rusher on the roster, too, in McCaffrey.

This year, that's not the case as San Francisco's offense and defense have both taken dips in productivity.

Jordan Mason has stepped up the most for 49ers this year

On defense, one could argue All-Pro lnebacker Fred Warner has elevated the Niners most. His pick-six early in the second quarter in Week 4 gave San Francisco a 13-0 lead against the New England Patriots.

That was his second of the season, which is tied for third in the league. His three forced fumbles are tops in the NFL so far this year, too.

After four games, wide receiver Jauan Jennings is fourth in the league with 364 receiving yards and tied with nine other players for the third most touchdown grabs (three) as well. In fact, all of those came in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Rams.

The one player above those two names who has been the most valuable to the 49ers is running back Jordan Mason.

Correct. The third-year rusher was tasked with a tall order of stepping into the starting lineup in place for the injured McCaffrey and Mitchell.

The undrafted talent out of Georgia Tech has done exactly that. By default, considering the lofty expectations upon him, he's filled the biggest shoes by far.

In Week 1 on Monday Night Football, Mason rushed for 147 yards on 28 carries. That is the first of three games already where he has carried the ball for at least 20 attempts and also tallied 100-plus yards.

In such contests, Mason has scored a touchdown, too. Purdy is trusting his new running back more down the field as of late.

The past two games, Purdy's throws to Mason have more than doubled. There were just two completions in as many contests and targets for a combined 9 yards. Against New England, the running back caught three balls including one for 24 yards.

Mason is showing he can move the chains like McCaffrey, even though the two are notably different breeds.

With the Niners' next two games against division opponents, who give up over 115 yards on the ground per game (the Arizona Cardinals and the Seattle Seahawks), there are going to be even more opportunities for the tailback to cement his importance.

If Mason has big games against those squads, his name should definitely be discussed in MVP talks, at least as far as the 49ers are concerned.

Read more from Niner Noise