49ers' John Lynch addresses Mac Jones trade rumors

A Thursday morning report suggested that it would cost the New York Giants "a lot" to acquire San Francisco 49ers backup quarterback Mac Jones after the Giants lost starter Jaxson Dart to a serious knee injury.

During a Thursday morning appearance on San Francisco Bay Area sports radio station KNBR, 49ers general manager John Lynch addressed the latest Jones-related trade rumors that are hovering over his organization. 

John Lynch on Mac Jones trade rumors: "As your quarterback goes, so goes your team"

"I'm going to leave that alone," Lynch said, per David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone. "What I will tell you is I think a lot of people see all of that and say, 'Okay, there's opportunity.' It also tells you we're very fortunate to have a guy like [starter Brock Purdy], franchise quarterback. But then to have a guy like Mac, in the event, there's no more important position in football. They're all important, but I think we know, as your quarterback goes, so goes your team." 

Lynch's final line would suggest he isn't in a hurry to accept a future trade asset for Jones after the former New England Patriots starter went 5-3 last season when Purdy was unavailable due to a toe injury. While Jones wanted an opportunity to compete for a starting job earlier this year, it's assumed no team was willing to match Lynch's asking price for the signal-caller. 

John Lynch wants quarterback to be "a position of strength" for 49ers

During the segment, Lynch insisted that he is "really excited about" third-choice option and 2025 seventh-round draft pick Kurtis Rourke. That said, it sounds like Lynch also would prefer to hold onto Jones through the rest of this season. 

"And I think back to Bill Walsh, and maybe he was onto something when he had Joe Montana, but he also brought Steve Young in here, and had Steve Bono behind them," Lynch continued. "So, it's a good position to be in a position of strength at, and it provides opportunities in a number of ways. The most important way being you're well insulated in the event something were ever to happen."

Like SNY NFL reporter Connor Hughes, Giants insider Dan Duggan of The Athletic mentioned that "contenders won’t be interested in parting with their insurance policies." On Thursday, Duggan wrote that Jones is "unavailable considering his value to a team with a legitimate shot to compete for a title." 

Veteran Jameis Winston is set to start for the 1-1 Giants when they host the 0-2 Tennessee Titans this coming Sunday. What happens regarding Big Blue's quarterback situation beyond that game is anybody's guess.