T
he San Francisco 49ers have a very important offseason ahead of them. Finishing 12-5 and returning to the playoffs after a one year absence, the 49ers’ Super Bowl hopes were quickly shattered with a 41-6 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Divisional playoffs. Dealing with numerous injuries as well, the 49ers surprised a lot of people throughout the course of the season.
And one player who played a big role in the 49ers’ success this season was backup quarterback, Mac Jones. Signing a two-year deal with the team in the offseason to serve as Brock Purdy‘s backup, Jones started in eight games while Purdy was hurt and played well, going 5-3 as the starter and keeping the 49ers playoff hopes alive. Looking much improved under the tutelage of head coach, Kyle Shanahan, Jones played well in Shanahan’s system– one known to be very quarterback friendly. And early this week, Jones confirmed that back in 2021, Shanahan had interest in drafting him over the player they took at No. 3 overall instead– Trey Lance.
Jones Confirms 49ers’ Interest in 2021
Ahead of the 2021 draft, the 49ers made a move that changed the course of the franchise– trading three first round picks to move up to the No. 3 spot. When the trade was made, speculation about who the 49ers would select immediately began, with Lance and Jones being the two favorites. The 49ers were in the market for a quarterback, coming off of a 6-10 season where starter Jimmy Garoppolo missed a lot of time with injuries, and ended up taking Lance. But the 49ers were very close to picking Jones, a guy who Shanahan loved throughout the entire pre-draft process.
“Kyle and I, we just have a great relationship, and he wanted me to be here with him when I was coming out of the draft,” Jones said on a podcast on Monday. “Obviously, it went in different ways, but that’s what it’s all about – reconnecting with people that either see value in you or whatnot.”
Jones ended up being selected 15th overall by the New England Patriots but after guiding the team to the playoffs as a rookie, as well as earning Pro Bowl and All-Rookie team honors, Jones struggled the next two seasons and was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars ahead of the ’24 season for the final season of his rookie contract.
Jones ‘Got His Joy Back’ in San Francisco
Football is very hard, especially as an NFL quarterback. And during his times of struggle, Jones was hard on himself and did not always have the most fun playing football. But since coming to San Francisco, and playing for Shanahan, Jones says that he ‘got that joy back’ and is excited for the future.
“Just hearing the stories about Kyle and how he sees the run game and the pass game and running the team meetings, and it was just interesting. And finally, I got to see it this year, and that was just awesome,” Jones said.
The 49ers do not plan to trade Jones this offseason, but things can change if the price is right. For now though, the 49ers will enter the offseason fully expecting Jones to continue on as their backup.
49ers’ Mac Jones Confirms Team’s Interest in Him in the 2021 NFL Draft