How 49ers' Mac Jones reacted to losing starting job to Brock Purdy

As had been expected, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed on Thursday that quarterback Brock Purdy will return to the starting lineup when the 6-4 49ers play at the Arizona Cardinals (3-6) this coming Sunday afternoon. 

Purdy is replacing Mac Jones, who made eight starts for San Francisco over the season's first 10 weeks. While speaking with reporters, Shanahan revealed how Jones handled the inevitable demotion. 

Mac Jones could see the writing on the wall

"Honestly, it was awesome," Shanahan said about Jones' reaction, per David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone. "I mean, I didn't even have to communicate with him. I think he understood the situation that he went into. He's understood it the whole time. And he had a real good idea that Brock was getting there, was going to be ready this week, so it wasn't something that I really had to have a big meeting with or anything — but I did before we went out on the practice field. I did call him in just to tell him how much I appreciated how well he played during that time, and to kind of thank him for it."

Jones went 5-3 as Purdy dealt with what became a lingering toe injury that he picked up in Week 1 and then aggravated in Week 4. According to Pro Football Reference, Jones heads into the weekend ranked 10th in the NFL among qualified players with a 64.9 adjusted QBR, second with an average of 268.9 passing yards per game and third with a 53.4 percent passing success rate for the season. 

That said, the 49ers have lost three of their past five games. 

Mac Jones, Brock Purdy have been good for each other

49ers general manager John Lynch has repeatedly insisted throughout the fall that the team's quarterback room wouldn't be impacted by outside whispers about a potential controversy. While Jones may want to start, he won't cause any issues behind the scenes with Purdy back atop the depth chart. 

"All these guys are super competitive, so everybody wants to start," Shanahan added. "But it really helps when guys have a lot of respect for the guy in front of them. That's usually when the backups have been patient and have handled it the right way. I know how much respect Mac has for Brock. He's watched him play in his career. He got to watch him throughout [organized team activities] and training camp. I know how good of a player he thinks he is. So, when you're in a situation like that, you respect the other guy, and you're usually the right type of dude, then, usually, they handle it the right way."

As of Friday morning, ESPN BET had the 49ers as 2.5-point road favorites against the Cardinals.