By Matt Barrows, Jeff Howe and Jayna Bardahl
Quarterback Mac Jones and the San Francisco 49ers agreed to terms on a two-year deal worth up to $7 million, according to a league source. The deal includes $5 million guaranteed and is worth up to $11.5 million with incentives.
Jones, the sixth-ranked QB and No. 101 overall free agent in The Athletic’s top 150 list, started seven games for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2024 as Trevor Lawrence’s backup. The Jaguars won just two of those games, both against the Tennessee Titans, as Jones finished the season with a 65.3 completion rate for 1,672 yards, eight touchdowns and eight interceptions across 10 total appearances.
Before his season in Jacksonville, Jones started 42 games across three seasons for the New England Patriots. His rookie campaign was promising, as the Patriots went 10-7 and clinched a playoff berth. But working under offensive coordinator Matt Patricia and QB coach Joe Judge in 2022, Jones’ production dipped and the Patriots’ skid began. He was benched for backup Bailey Zappe for his final six games in New England.
Jones was selected 15th in the 2021 NFL Draft out of Alabama, where he won two College Football Playoff national championships. During the lead-up to that draft, he was heavily rumored to be a favorite of 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan with San Francisco poised to draft a quarterback with the No. 3 pick. Instead, the 49ers drafted Trey Lance, who lasted only two seasons in San Francisco before being traded to the Dallas Cowboys.
By the time of Lance’s trade, Brock Purdy — the last pick in the 2022 draft — had unseated Lance as the starting quarterback. Purdy remains the starter, set to sign a lucrative contract extension this offseason, with Jones now in line to be his backup. Jones hasn’t flourished in the NFL, but he has played in a lot of contests. He’s started 49 games with a 54-44 touchdown-interception ratio in that span.
How he fits
Jones will begin his tenure as the No. 2 quarterback behind Purdy. The two players who dueled for that position last season — Joshua Dobbs and Brandon Allen — are unlikely to be back. Dobbs agreed to a two-year deal with New England, while the 49ers haven’t shown much interest in re-signing Allen, who spent the last two years with the team. Allen was a favorite of quarterbacks coach Brian Griese, who stepped away from that role this offseason. The only other quarterback on the roster is rookie Tanner Mordecai, an undrafted rookie in 2024. Mordecai might have the best arm of the group.
There was good reason to speculate that Shanahan and the 49ers liked Jones in the run-up to the draft four years ago. It was true. Shanahan has since said that Jones and Lance, the North Dakota State passer whom they ultimately chose at No. 3, were the two he liked the most early on. Jones’ strengths are his quick processing ability, his accuracy and his decision-making, which are paramount in Shanahan’s system and which Purdy also possesses.
“What separates me is my preparation and my ability to take what I learn from the coaches’ meetings and my meetings and then apply it to the field,” Jones said after a pro day workout in the run-up to the draft. “I’m going to do exactly what the coach tells me to do. I’m going to play within the framework of the offense.”
That’s what Shanahan likes about Purdy — he’s an extension of Shanahan on the field and runs it the way the head coach wants it run. What Jones lacks — and what swung the argument for Lance — are top-end physical gifts like a sturdy frame, big arm and ability to gobble up yards on the run.
2025 impact
The 49ers are hoping Jones doesn’t have much impact on the 2025 season because the opposite would mean that Purdy got injured or wasn’t playing well. It’s worth noting that while Purdy has missed just two starts due to injury since taking over late in the 2022 season, he’s dealt with an array of issues in that span, including a broken rib, concussion, shoulder injury and a torn elbow ligament that required surgery. At 6 feet 5/8 inches, Purdy doesn’t have a big frame and puts himself at risk by running the ball.
It’s also worth noting that the 49ers are in the midst of negotiating Purdy’s contract and that he has one more year remaining on his modest rookie deal. The 49ers always were going to have to bring in a backup. But having someone Shanahan has admitted he considered for the No. 3 pick might put a bit more pressure on Purdy than, say, having Allen in the backup spot.
Cap update
It’s difficult to say exactly what the 49ers’ cap situation is because no one knows how their recent free-agent deals were constructed. None, however, have been big-money contracts, including Jones’. He’s likely to count around $3-4 million against the cap in 2025, leaving the 49ers with perhaps $30 million to still spend.
Outlook
Neither Lance nor Jones turned out to be worthy of a first-round pick. Like the 49ers with Lance, the Patriots ultimately traded Jones — to the Jaguars where he played behind another 2021 selection, Lawrence. As a backup, however, he seems like a smart acquisition. Shanahan has an affinity toward him. His strengths are similar to Purdy’s. And the 49ers have shown they are good with quarterback reclamation projects. They took on another former first-round pick in Sam Darnold in 2023 and, after Darnold signed a free-agent deal with the Minnesota Vikings a year ago, San Francisco will be compensated with an extra draft pick this year. Maybe a similar scenario happens with Jones.
Required reading
(Photo: Morgan Tencza / Imagn Images)
