Former Alabama All-American Mac Jones is looking forward to getting back to winning in his first season with the San Francisco 49ers.
In his final season with the Crimson Tide, Jones helmed the offense for a team that didn’t lose a game on its way to winning the CFP national championship for the 2020 season. In his first NFL season, Jones started every game for the New England Patriots’ most recent playoff team.
But in the three seasons since, Jones had a 10-22 record as a starting quarterback, and his teams had a 6-13 mark without him in the starting lineup.
In March, the 49ers signed Jones as a free agent to back up quarterback Brock Purdy.
“Like I said when I signed, it’s just a bunch of winners,” Jones told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Jennifer Lee Chan while providing an arm for teammate George Kittle’s Tight End University, “and I know that we’re going to get it back on track here this year. And the guys work every day -- the coaches and players -- and it’s just a really well-run organization, so I’m looking forward to continue to grow and learn.”
After playing in three consecutive NFC Championship games and reaching the Super Bowl for the 2023 season, San Francisco posted a 6-11 record in 2024. The 49ers also won only six games in 2020 before running off 35 regular-season and six playoff victories in the intervening three years.
In addition to helping San Francisco regain its form in 2025, Jones said he aims to “just continue to grow as a player, a person and teammate, and I know it’s going to take care of itself the way I work. And they rubbed off on me, too, so I’m working hard. They’re working hard. And my goal is to be ready to play when I have to go in. And that’s all you can ask for.”
Jones said he made progress toward that goal while working with Purdy and San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan in the 49ers’ offseason program.
“We’ve only had a few months together, but Kyle has been really cool and really smart the way he sees the game,” Jones said. “I mean, I’ve heard the stories. But to be in the room and watch him break down, like, special teams, defense and offense, it’s been really cool for me. And I’ve obviously learned a lot in my past about the defensive side of the ball, but to learn more about offense and defense together, it’s been a big benefit so far.”
Jones entered the NFL as the 15th selection in the 2021 NFL Draft. Purdy entered the NFL as the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. But pressed into service as a rookie, Purdy started seven straight victories to get San Francisco to the NFC Championship Game, and he has remained the starter.
“He’s very, like, meticulous about how he goes about his work,” Jones said about Purdy. “And I’ve known him for a decent amount of time. But to really get close with him and see how he operates, and he’s very, like, Type A, very organized, and he wants everything to be perfect. And that’s why he’s had success in the league. He’s done it very consistently. And he’s really striving to do it again. Like, he’s not just satisfied because he had a couple of good years. Like, he wants to be great every day, so it’s pretty cool.”
Jones changed teams last offseason, too, when the Patriots traded him to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Injuries to Trevor Lawrence allowed Jones to start seven games for Jacksonville in the final season of his rookie contract.
Jones started a 12-7 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Nov. 1 and a 52-6 loss to the Detroit Lions on Nov. 17. Lawrence’s return to the lineup lasted less than one half, and Jones took the rest of the snaps for the Jacksonville offense after entering a 23-20 loss to the Houston Texans on Dec. 1.
Beginning with that game, Jones completed 134-of-202 passes for 1,395 yards with eight touchdowns and five interceptions and ran for 77 yards on 21 carries. Over the final six weeks of the regular season, Jones ranked eighth in the NFL in passing yards.
The Jaguars won two of Jones’ final five starts to finish the season with a 4-13 record.
Jones helped at Tight End University during his summer break. The 49ers get back to work when training camp opens, with the rookies reporting on July 15 and the veterans coming in on July 22.
The three-game preseason schedule kicks off against the Denver Broncos on Aug. 9, and San Francisco starts its regular-season slate against the Seattle Seahawks on Sept. 7.
“The attendance was really high,” Jones said about the 49ers’ offseason program. “Been on a few teams, and attendance is always decent in OTAs. But I feel like for a really good team, there’s a lot of guys there -- like 99 percent or something -- so that was cool. For the young guys, too. I was talking to some of the rookies, like how cool it is to learn from like a Hall of Fame-type player, whether it’s George or, you know, anybody on the team – (linebacker) Fred (Warner). So they take that to heart, hopefully, because if you’re a young player in the league and you can learn from great players, it’ll help you in the long run.”
