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Mac Jones couldn’t have asked for a better lifeline than the San Francisco 49ers. After a rocky start to his career, he now finds himself in a quarterback-friendly system with elite talent around him—just like Sam Darnold, this could be the fresh start he needs to rewrite his story. The pressure’s off, the weapons are there, and if he has any chance of staying in the NFL, this is the perfect place to prove it. Bill Barnwell is someone who would not be surprised if he quietly turns some heads in the Bay.
The ESPN writer recently reviewed a number of offseason transactions. He equated the opportunity Jones has to the one Darnold turned into a three-year deal with Seattle. Read his thoughts below:
“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.”
It’s easy to decipher why that might be the case. Even in a down year, the Niners are still in the mix in the NFC because of how good Shanahan is. A great offensive line, weapons like CMC and George Kittle, and one of the best play callers around will rejuvenate any QB. Of course, it is Brock Purdy’s team. That is not even a debate. However, if he should get hurt, or the season really goes off the rails, then Jones could get a golden opportunity to show whether he’s got something left.
If Mac Jones is ever going to get his career back on track, there’s no better place to do it than in San Francisco. Shanahan’s system is tailor-made to make quarterbacks look good—quick reads, play-action, YAC monsters everywhere. If Jones can’t make it work here, he won’t make it anywhere.
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