Can the 49ers resurrect Mac Jones’ NFL career? Pro Football Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe certainly believes so.
After San Francisco signed Jones to a two-year contract, the 26-year-old signal-caller now has the chance to work with coach Kyle Shanahan and benefit from playing in a quarterback-friendly scheme in the 49ers’ offense — something that hasn’t always been the case during his four-year NFL career.
During a recent episode of the “Nightcap” show, Sharpe detailed why the No. 15 overall selection in the 2021 NFL Draft wasn’t put in a position to maintain success after a strong rookie campaign with the New England Patriots.
“I think Mac Jones was really good in his rookie season when he had an offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels, in his ear,” Sharpe said. “For some unknown reason to me, I think we’re going to put two guys in his ear that has never called an offensive play in their lives, I think that will work out OK. And it was terrible.”
Sharpe was alluding to the Patriots’ bizarre decisiont to have longtime defensive coordinator and offensive line coach Matt Patricia serve as New England’s defacto play-caller and offensive coordinator for the 2022 NFL season.
Jones earned Pro Bowl honors after throwing for 3,801 yards and 2022 touchdowns as a rookie, but saw his numbers across the board take a dip in his sophomore campaign among New England’s puzzling offensive staff changes.
Sharpe explained that while he doesn’t necessarily believe that Jones is the kind of quarterback who will elevate a team on his own, the former Alabama signal-caller has a proven track record when operating in an offense stocked with weapons — something the 49ers are able to offer.
“Yes. Sometimes I got to have an airboat. I don’t need that much water in order to get to where I need to get to,” Sharpe said. “Now, if I’m on a pontoon, I need a lot of water because that thing is heavy. So, I’m not saying he’s a guy that can elevate. I’m saying maybe he needs a situation where guys need to elevate him. Because if you look at him when he was at Alabama, when he had [Jaylen Waddle], when he had [Devonta Smith], when he had [John Metchie III], when he had [Najee Harris] in the backfield, how did he look?”
Jones put up prolific numbers during his final season at Alabama, throwing for 4,500 yards with 41 touchdowns and four interceptions across 13 games while leading the Crimson Tide to a blowout College Football Playoff National Championship win.
Jones set a single-season NCAA record with a 77.4 completion percentage, efficiently distributing the ball to Alabama’s bevy of talented skill position players.
While Brock Purdy firmly is in control of the 49ers’ No. 1 quarterback job, Jones doesn’t necessarily need to see the field regularly to have an opportunity to boost his stock.
Sam Darnold made only one start for the 49ers in what essentially was a meaningless Week 18 game during the NFL 2023 season, but was able to parlay his brief stint in San Francisco into an impressive season with the Minnesota Vikings, and most recently a lucrative three-year contract with the Seattle Seahawks.
Jones offers the 49ers a formidable insurance policy behind Purdy, and coach Kyle Shanhahan and San Francisco’s offense provide the perfect landing spot for the former first-round pick to reset his value and potentially open up further opportunities down the line.
A win-win signing that Sharpe, and many others believe is the right move for the four-year veteran.
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