49ers Game: Jets Face Defeat Despite Rodgers' Dauntless Return

The 49ers Game: A Memorable Encounter

Aaron Rodgers made his season debut Monday night at San Francisco, returning to game action after an Achilles tendon tear limited his first Jets’ season to four plays. Rodgers threw a touchdown and led 2 TD drives, but the 49ers, playing without injured star RB Christian McCaffrey, played like the NFC defending champions in a convincing 32-19 victory.

First Half Highlights

The Jets finished -2 in turnover margin and the Niners controlled the ball throughout, scoring on each of their final eight possessions while rushing for 181 yards. With McCaffrey on the sideline, Jordan Mason turned in a career performance, amassing 147 yards on 28 carries with 1 TD as HC Kyle Shanahan’s club totaled 401 yards.

• “Credit to them,” HC Robert Saleh said. “They executed a lot better than we did. We have to be better.”

Rodgers' Performance

Rodgers (13-21-167-1TD-1INT) tried to will the Jets back into the game in the third quarter. Faced with a 26-7 deficit, he uncorked a perfect pass to Allen Lazard down the visiting sideline for 26 yards. Then the master of the free play drew Leonard Floyd offside before going back to Lazard for a 36-yard TD. After a failed 2-point attempt, the Jets had inched closer, 26-13. It was Rodgers’ 18th TD pass on a free play and the 476th of his Hall of Fame career.

Key Moments

The only things that stopped Rodgers in the first quarter were a Lazard third-down drop and a Breece Hall fumble. On the Jets’ third possession, Rodgers looked vintage and led a 12-play, 70-yard scoring drive that culminated on Hall’s 3-yard TD. He connected on 7 of 8 for 60 yards and was masterful on third down, keeping the chains moving with 16-, 14- and 8-yard gains to Garrett Wilson on third-and-8, third-and-7 and third-and-7, respectively. Hall’s TD gave the Jets a 7-3 lead with 3:37 left in the opening stanza.

Second Half Struggles

With both clubs exchanging momentum early, the 49ers turned to the punishing ground game on a 12-play march that ended with Deebo Samuel’s 2-yard score as the home team grabbed a 13-7 lead. Minus McCaffrey, the Niners were able to get great production from Mason, a powerful third-year back who established a career high with 74 yards on his first 11 carries. The 49ers totaled 210 yards in the first half and scored on their final four possessions as they grabbed a 16-7 lead at intermission.

• The Jets’ final two possessions in the second quarter resulted in threes-and-outs and 5 yards. Hall was limited to 25 yards on his first 10 attempts.

Post-Game Reactions

“We had the three-and-outs that really hurt us,” Rodgers said. “But I think a lot of stuff is correctible which is great for the coaches. It’s frustrating for players because we know how close we were/are.”

“They played keep away,” Saleh added. “I felt like our offense never had a chance to get into rhythm. The first drive had a chance to extend it and I thought Allen had a really good game minus the first third down and then we had the fumble on the second drive. Then we had the really nice drive and then from there it felt like forever before our offense held the ball again. I feel like offensively we did a lot of really nice things especially for Aaron in his first game back.