Why ESPN believes ex-Patriots QB could revive career with 49ers
Mac Jones might be in the perfect spot to revive his NFL career.
The quarterback signed a two-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers in March after spending a not-so-great 2024 season with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Before that, Jones spent his first three years with the New England Patriots.
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But things didn't go well in New England. After a promising rookie season in 2021, Jones couldn't build off that year, regressed and struggled to find a groove under center.
Now in San Francisco, Jones will try to start fresh. And even though it's likely Brock Purdy will remain the team's QB1, ESPN's Bill Barnwell believes Jones is in the perfect spot to start over.
And it's because of the path Sam Darnold took.
'If there's one player attempting to explicitly go on the Darnold rejuvenation path, it's Jones. Darnold restarted his career by joining the 49ers in 2023, where he spent the season as a backup to Brock Purdy,' Barnwell wrote. 'Darnold threw only 46 passes in a San Francisco uniform, most of which came in a meaningless Week 18 game against the Rams. Working with coach Kyle Shanahan apparently did enough to rebuild Darnold's confidence before he left for a one-year deal with Minnesota, though. You know what happened next.'
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Darnold, like Jones, was a first-round pick and expected to help turn a franchise around. But his time with the New York Jets was disastrous. He then spent two seasons with the Carolina Panthers before latching on with the 49ers. Darnold's 10 appearances in San Francisco was enough for the Minnesota Vikings to take a chance on him where he turned in a 14-3 season as a starter en route to a Wild Card appearance.
Darnold's performance earned him a three-year deal with the Seattle Seahawks this offseason.
Whether Jones has a similar path to Darnold remains to be seen, but Barnwell believes Jones will have "best offensive infrastructure Jones has played in since his time at Alabama."
"Jones probably isn't going to win the job away from the $265 million QB," Barnwell wrote, 'but don't be surprised if he plays well enough to get a more significant opportunity elsewhere on his next deal in 2026.'
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