The 49ers spoil Aaron Rodgers' return with a 32-19 win over the Jets

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Fill-in back Jordan Mason took top billing in a game hyped as Aaron Rodgers' return.

Mason ran for 147 yards and a touchdown in place of the injured Christian McCaffrey and the 49ers spoiled Rodgers' comeback game with a 32-19 victory over the New York Jets on Monday night.

The former undrafted free agent overpowered New York's highly acclaimed defense with his physical running style, helping the Niners score on eight straight drives.

“I thought he runs like he always does,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “When you get him the ball, he breaks tackles, usually gets more than we block for. When we had the good lanes, he always hit them and got a bunch. But, JP was awesome today.”

Rodgers threw for 167 yards and one TD and also had an interception exactly 52 weeks to the day after his debut with New York ended with a torn Achilles after four snaps.

Rodgers had problems moving around in the pocket but still showed off the arm that helped him win four MVPs with the Green Bay Packers a few times in his first real action for the Jets.

“I can play better,” Rodgers said. “I missed a couple of throws. ... I felt overall I got the ball out pretty good but there were some opportunities I’d like to have back.”

Mason made the most of his opportunities in his first career start. He had just 83 carries his first two seasons but took advantage of being one of the few healthy backs for the Niners this summer to earn a larger role with McCaffrey's sore calf and Achilles still bothering him.

His 28 carries were the most for any Niners player in a regular season game in 13 years as he showed he can handle a full-time load.

“I'm really excited for him,” quarterback Brock Purdy said. “He's earned it. He's the kind of guy where it's not given to him. To see him go out and do what he did tonight, I'm so happy for him.”

Deebo Samuel added a 2-yard TD run and Jake Moody made a franchise record-tying six field goals to lead the 49ers to the win.

Purdy threw for 231 yards with no touchdowns or turnovers against a Jets defense that generated little pressure without holdout edge rusher Haason Reddick.

The Niners took control of the game around halftime. They got a field goal on a 12-play, 75-yard drive at the end of the first half and scored on Mason's 5-yard run on an 11-play, 70-yarder to start the second half. That turned a 13-7 lead into a 23-7 advantage with the Jets getting only one kneel down snap during that stretch.

“That’s a championship outfit, and they introduced us to some championship football,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said.

Rodgers then threw an interception on the next drive on a pass to Garrett Wilson that was deflected by Deommodore Lenoir into the hands of linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles.

Rodgers threw his first TD pass in 610 days when he took advantage of a free play when Leonard Floyd jumped offsides to connect on a 36-yard scoring strike to Allen Lazard that cut the deficit to 26-13. Lazard caught a second TD in the closing seconds from Tyrod Taylor after the game had already been decided.

“We expect greatness when we step on the field,” Rodgers said. “There were moments, moments that felt pretty good but not sustained. I felt like if we could just get a first down we’d be rolling. But we had those three and outs which hurt us. I think a lot of stuff is correctable.”

Rodgers' second game with the Jets lasted much longer than his first, which ended with a season-ending Achilles injury after just four snaps in 2023.

New York went three-and-out on the opening drive this game with two handoffs and a dropped pass by Lazard before a setback on the fourth snap that was temporary instead of season ending this time around. Rodgers' first completion as a Jet was caught by Breece Hall, who had the ball punched out by Fred Warner for a lost fumble that set up a Niners field goal.

Rodgers got the Jets moving on the following drive, converting three third-down passes to Wilson to set up Hall’s 3-yard TD run. Rodgers went 6 for 7 for 61 yards on the drive.

New York didn't get another first down in the half and trailed 16-7 at the break.

Jets: CB Michael Carter left with an ankle injury.

49ers: McCaffrey was inactive after being listed as questionable because of injuries to his calf and Achilles. ... LG Aaron Banks left in the third quarter with a calf injury.

Jets: Visit Tennessee on Sunday.

49ers: Visit Minnesota on Sunday.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh, center, watches from the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams looks to block during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason, right, celebrates with offensive tackle Colton McKivitz, front left, after scoring against the New York Jets during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

New York Jets wide receiver Allen Lazard (10) celebrates with wide receiver Garrett Wilson (5) after scoring against the San Francisco 49ers during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

San Francisco 49ers place-kicker Jake Moody (4) watches his field goal with Jake Tonges (88) and Mitch Wishnowsky (3) during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason, left, runs against New York Jets safety Tony Adams (22) during the first half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, right, sits on the bench during the second half of an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) looks to pass the ball during the first half of an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

GENEVA (AP) — Independent U.N. human rights experts said in a new report Tuesday that their findings show Venezuela's government has intensified the use of “harshest and most violent" tools of repression following the disputed July presidential election.

The official results of the July 28 vote have been widely criticized as undemocratic, opaque and aimed to maintain President Nicolás Maduro in power.

In its report, the fact-finding mission on Venezuela, commissioned by the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council, denounced rights violations including arbitrary detentions, torture, and sexual and gender-based violence by the country's security forces that “taken as a whole, constitute the crime against humanity of persecution on political grounds.”

“During the period covered by this report, and especially after the presidential election of July 28, 2024, the state reactivated and intensified the harshest and most violent mechanisms of its repressive apparatus,” said the experts in the report, which covered a one-year period through Aug. 31.

The findings echo concerns from U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Human Rights Watch, and others about Venezuela and its democracy, including repression before and after the highly anticipated vote and the subsequent flight into exile of Venezuela's opposition leader Edmundo González.

Venezuela’s National Electoral Council, which is stacked with Maduro loyalists, said he won with 52% of the vote. But opposition supporters collected tally sheets from 80% of the nation's electronic voting machines, and said that indicated González had won the election — with twice as many votes as Maduro.

Global condemnation over the lack of transparency prompted Maduro to ask Venezuela’s Supreme Tribunal of Justice, whose members are aligned with the ruling party, to audit the results. The high court reaffirmed his victory.

The independent experts, who do not represent the United Nations, decried the government's efforts to crush peaceful opposition to its rule.

The justice system — led by the Supreme Tribunal — “is clearly subordinated” to the interests of Maduro and his close allies and served as a “key instrument in its plan to repress all forms of political and social opposition,” they wrote.

In the hours after Maduro was declared the winner, thousands of people took to the streets across Venezuela. The protests were largely peaceful, but demonstrators also toppled statues of Maduro’s predecessor, the late Hugo Chávez, threw rocks at law enforcement officers and buildings, and burned police motorcycles and government propaganda.

Maduro's government responded to the demonstrations with full force, carrying out arbitrary detentions, prosecutions as well as a campaign that encourages people to report relatives, neighbors and other acquaintances who participated in the protests or cast doubt on the results.

The independent experts said they compiled the report through interviews with 383 people and reviews of court case files and other documents while also acknowledging limits to their information-gathering in the post-election period.

The experts said their requests for information from Venezuelan authorities were “ignored” despite appeals for cooperation from the rights council, which is made up of a rotating membership among 47 U.N. member countries.

Associated Press writers Regina Garcia Cano in Mexico City and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

FILE - Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro addresses government loyalists gathered at the presidential palace in support of his reelection one month after the presidential vote, in Caracas, Venezuela, Aug. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)

FILE - Protesters clash with police during demonstrations against the official election results declaring President Nicolas Maduro's reelection, the day after the vote in Caracas, Venezuela, July 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix, File)