Mac Jones Reveals the Main Reason He Wanted to Join the 49ers

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Mac Jones spoke out about why he joined Kyle Shanahan’s San Francisco 49ers.

Mac Jones is trying to learn new things, which is why he joined the San Francisco 49ers.

The Niners backup quarterback recently revealed that he picked San Francisco due to Kyle Shanahan’s ability to develop QBs.

Jones, who signed a two-year, $8.4 million with the 49ers in his first trip through free agency, was first drafted by the New England Patriots with 15th overall pick in 2021.

Jones’ fifth-year option was declined by the Patriots after coach Bill Belichick was fired, and he was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2024 where he started seven games after Trevor Lawrence was injured midseason.

The 27-year-old guided the Patriots to the playoffs in his first season with the Patriots but has a 20-29 record in 49 career starts. Jones has a respectable
65.9 completion percentage and 54/44 touchdown-to-interception rate in his career.

Why Did Mac Jones Sign With the 49ers?

Jones admitted he enjoyed his first foray into free agency and hand picked the 49ers as his preferred landing spot.

“When you go through your first free agency, that’s the first time you get to pick where you want to play,” Jones said at a press conference at 49ers OTAs this week. “This was a really enticing place for me, seeing the production the quarterbacks put throughout the years in [Shanahan’s] offense.”

Jones may only see the field if franchise quarterback Brock Purdy is injured, but he still hopes to be a sponge and learn from the Niners organization that is a perennial Super Bowl contender.

“Watching Brock from afar, and being a fan [of his] from afar, just the way he plays; very precise, very on time [and] cerebral, it’s all things I’ve done at some points in my career and want to get more consistent at,” Jones said. “So being here and learning from [Purdy] and the coaches — not just [Shanahan], but everybody, all the coaches — I think it’s going to benefit me [and] just get me back playing how I know I can play.”

What Else Is Enticing About the 49ers for Mac Jones?

Playing in Shanahan’s offense has already been educational for Jones, even as he gets set for his fifth-career NFL season.

“To finally get in and learn [Shanahan’s offense], it’s been a little bit challenging,” Jones said. “But it’s a great challenge, because it’s some things I’ve done and some things I haven’t done at all, and that’s interesting being my fifth season in the league.

“Learning different footwork and timing and how [Shanahan] sees the game, it’s all going to come together here, and I’m really excited to learn from Brock.”

Jones was Purdy’s host at his official visit at Alabama before the now-$265 million man ultimately decided to go to Iowa State, which led to him being chosen by the 49ers with the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft.

“We got to hang out, eat dinner and play video games at my apartment,” Jones said. “We always talk about that and how crazy the world works. His story is so cool to me, getting picked where he did, then working his butt off and getting what he deserves, I think that’s something anyone can look at and be like ‘wow, that’s impressive.’”

Pat Pickens is an experienced sports writer and media personality who has written for outlets like NHL.com, the Associated Press, the New York Times and USA Today. He covers the NFL, NBA, NHL and NBA as a breaking news contributor at Heavy. More about Pat Pickens