Why Mac Jones believed he could resurrect his career working with 49ers' Kyle Shanahan

Quarterback Mac Jones likely didn't envision when he joined the San Francisco 49ers in March that he would make his first start for the club before the official end of summer arrived. 

That's exactly what happened when Jones was needed for San Francisco's Week 2 game at the New Orleans Saints after Brock Purdy suffered left shoulder and toe injuries in the Week 1 win at the Seattle Seahawks. After Jones guided San Francisco to a 26-21 victory over the Saints, he spoke with Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated about why he wanted to work with 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan as a fifth-year pro. 

Mac Jones has long been a Kyle Shanahan fan

"I knew what I wanted, and what I was looking for," Jones said about signing with the 49ers. "I wanted to get to a proven system, and Kyle’s had that year-in and year-out. I’ve always enjoyed watching his offense, and ran a version of it in college. And I really just wanted to get back to playing like I know I can."

Shanahan may have wanted to make Jones instead of Trey Lance the third overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, but the 49ers instead landed Lance. Lance is no longer with San Francisco, while Jones earned a Pro Bowl nod as a rookie after the New England Patriots made him the 15th choice of the 2021 player-selection process. 

However, Jones' relationship with Bill Belichick allegedly deteriorated up until the legendary head coach pulled the signal-caller from games on four occasions during the 2023 campaign. More recently, Jones lost five of seven starts for the Jacksonville Jaguars last season.

What Mac Jones worked on ahead of first San Francisco 49ers start

According to Breer, Jones worked on "tying together a quarterback’s eyes and feet to work him through progressions" so that he could "play faster" against the Saints. On Sunday, the 27-year-old completed 26-of-39 pass attempts for 279 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Per ESPN stats, Jones began Monday ranked fifth in the NFL among qualified quarterbacks with a 113.1 passer rating for the season. 

"Doing it consistently is my talent," Jones added during his postgame chat with Breer. 

Shanahan revealed on Sunday that "there's a chance" Purdy could play in this coming Sunday's home game against the 2-0 Arizona Cardinals. As of Monday morning, ESPN BET had the 49ers as 1.5-point favorites for that matchup. Perhaps Jones' performance against the Saints will make Shanahan feel a bit better about sitting Purdy for at least one more game to get the QB1 right for the rest of the fall.