On Thursday night, Mac Jones became the third quarterback in San Francisco 49ers history to start 3-0 in his first three starts, joining Y.A. Tittle and two of Kyle Shanahan’s finest achievements, Jimmy Garoppolo and Brock Purdy. Now, Jones appears to be Shanahan’s latest successful project as the former first-round pick rehabilitates his career in San Francisco, but it’s a union that could have, and probably should have, come much sooner.
Ahead of the 2021 NFL Draft, with the 49ers just one season removed from their Super Bowl loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, Shanahan was done with Garoppolo, and he, along with general manager John Lynch, used the No. 12 selection and two additional first-round picks to trade up to the No. 3 selection.
The Mac Jones vs. Trey Lance debate is settled
Immediately after making the trade, the rumor began to circulate that Shanahan made the move with the intention of drafting Mac Jones, coming off a national championship season with the Crimson Tide. However, that was not to be.
Rather than select Jones, San Francisco became enticed by the dual-threat ability of North Dakota State’s Trey Lance and took him with the pick. Jones eventually came off the board at No. 15 and began his career by leading Bill Belichick’s final playoff appearance with the New England Patriots, but his career quickly fizzled out.
Jones was set up for failure on an eroding roster due to Belichick’s long run of drafting incompetence, and eventually saddled with longtime defensive coach and current Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia as his play-caller in 2022 after Josh McDaniels left to become the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
The latter point feels especially significant considering that Jones’s 33-for-49, 343-yard, two-touchdown performance in the 26-23 overtime win against the Rams came without Ricky Pearsall, Brandon Aiyuk, Jauan Jennings, and George Kittle. So essentially, on an offense with as much talent as the 2022 Patriots. And coincidentally also with Kendrick Bourne as his No. 1 wide receiver.
Lance didn’t even have the rookie season highs that Jones experienced before fading into obscurity. The 49ers, though lucked into Purdy, who was the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, eventually became the team’s starter and led the franchise back to the Super Bowl, only to fall to Patrick Mahomes once again.
A new QB debate in San Francisco?
Now, after a season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Jones has made his way to San Francisco, and just as Shanahan expected in 2021, he’s thriving in one of the league’s most quarterback-friendly offensive systems, and it’s forcing everyone to ask once again, what if the 49ers had just drafted Jones five years ago?
Would the 49ers have broken through and won a Super Bowl by now? Would Brock Purdy be languishing as a backup on the 49ers roster or wasting away somewhere else? Would Jones be one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL, as Purdy became for Shanahan?
It’s too soon to say anything definitive. Jones has all the same arm strength and mobility limitations that kept Garoppolo from elevating Shanahan’s offense in the postseason. That’s ultimately the reason that Shanahan and Lynch became so infatuated with Lance’s remarkable physical gifts and took a swing on the upside.
Still, it’s clear that Jones’s career would be better off had he begun it in San Francisco, but then, what quarterback wouldn’t be better with Shanahan calling plays? There aren’t many.
Jones’s early success is more of a testament to the head coach than the quarterback, but for those who believed in Jones back ahead of the 2021 Draft, it’s easy to get lost in the hypotheticals after a performance like that. And to ask another tough question, what if Jones takes the starting job from Purdy this season?