Week 1 MNF Recap

    Written by: William Petersen •

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    The first Monday Night Football game of the 2024 NFL season was kicked off with the Aaron Rodgers led New York Jets who visited the defending NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers. This was the first full game for Rodgers in a Jets uniform after tearing his Achilles on the fourth play of MNF last year. Rodgers and the Jets came into this season as one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl but did not convince anybody they could make the playoffs the way they played in Santa Clara, Monday night. The 49ers continued their dominant form from last season as they controlled the game the whole way, pounding the Jets 32-19 on ESPN. San Francisco was without star running back and 2023 Offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffrey who was declared out an hour before the game due to an achilles/calf injury that he sustained in Week 1 of preseason. After finding out Friday night that he would get the start, Jordan Mason took no time to acclimate himself to his first primetime start, toting 28 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown. Mason’s workhorse performance helped propel the Niners past a Jets offense that never seemed to find any cohesion after Breece Hall fumbled on their second drive. Aaron Rodgers, forty years of age started to glare through his silver beard at the end of the game after he finished 13/21 for 167 yards with a touchdown and interception.

    The Jets now start 0-1 in a debut for Aaron Rodgers that was supposed to be something special after his initial debut that ended in a season ending injury in 2023. The Jets offense lost confidence after starting with a punt and then fumble by Hall who only recorded 54 yards on 16 carries but did manage to find the endzone on their third drive of the game. Star wideout Garrett Wilson struggled against a stout Niners secondary, catching six passes for 60 yards on 11 targets. The star man for the Jets tonight was Rodgers teammate on the Packers Allen Lazard who led the team in receiving yards and touchdowns with six receptions for 89 yards and two touchdowns. The connection between Lazard and Rodgers should be promising to Jets fans after Rodgers age showed in a game that they were only 4.5 underdogs. The Jets will regroup as they head to Tennessee for a date with a Titans team who blew a 17 point lead to Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

    Although the Niners did not have Christian McCaffrey, Jordan Mason and Deebo Samuel picked up the slack, Samuel finished with eight rushes for 23 yards and a touchdown as well as five receptions for 54 yards in a game that was dedicated by the Niners rushing attack. Brock Purdy managed the game well finishing 19/29 for 231 yards and played turnover free football all night. San Francisco looks poised to make another playoff run if they can continue to run the ball like they did tonight, and once CMC returns from injury the possible two headed monster of him and Mason could be a deadly combo for NFL defenses to stop. The lack of CMC’s availability allowed for star Deebo Samuel and an UDFA Mason to take the reins and help San Francisco start 1-0 in consecutive seasons since Chip Kelly was the coach in 2015/16. If the Niners can stay healthy and continue to spread the ball around while keeping Purdy off the turf, San Fran should have no problem getting back to the NFC Championship game in back to back seasons. The 49ers travel to Minneapolis next week for a showdown with Justin Jefferson and a somewhat revitalized Sam Darnold who dominated in the Vikings Week 1 win over the New York Giants.

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