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Nick Wagoner
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — For six weeks from early October to mid-November, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy wasn’t sure how his injured right big toe would feel when he woke up most mornings.
As the Niners began preparing for Week 11 against the Arizona Cardinals, Purdy was finally ready to return. The only potential complication? Backup Mac Jones had not only kept the Niners afloat but thrived in Purdy’s stead, leading the team to five wins in eight starts and leaving outside observers wondering whether he should continue starting.
Inside the 49ers’ quarterback room, there was no such consternation. The job belonged to Purdy and, as long as he was healthy enough to play near the standard he’d set on his way to landing a five-year, $265 million contract in May, he would reclaim the role.
There was no need for emergency meetings or big declarations from coach Kyle Shanahan, quarterbacks coach Mick Lombardi or anyone else in the organization.
Early in the week, Purdy simply told Jones he was back. Jones responded by welcoming him back and launching into things he’d seen from Arizona’s defense in the Week 3 game he started in Purdy’s place.
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«For me to be able to see that and feel that in a real way, I’ll always be appreciative of that,» Purdy told ESPN. «Sometimes in this business you can make it weird. But he did not.»
That small moment set the 49ers on a course for big things as they finished 12-5, earned the NFC’s No. 6 seed and now will face the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday (4:30 p.m. ET, Fox) in the wild-card round. None of it would have been possible without Jones and Purdy teaming up to form the league’s best one-two quarterback tandem.
According to ESPN Research, the Niners are the first team to make the playoffs after having multiple quarterbacks start at least eight games each since the NFL expanded to eight divisions in 2002.
Buoyed by Shanahan’s quarterback-friendly system and the fun-loving environment of the QB room and the locker room overall, Jones has resuscitated his career. Save for a rough Week 18 outing against Seattle, Purdy finished the regular season playing some of his best football after returning from injury. Together, they’ve thrown touchdowns, created personalized handshakes, discussed conspiracy theories and danced their way back to the postseason stage.
«We spend so much time together and it’s such a long season and there’s a lot of pressure situations, a lot of things you’ve got to talk about,» Shanahan said. «And when you’re in a small room with people all year long, if you’re irritated with each other, it makes the year a lot harder. … It’s been a really cool room.»
Neither Purdy nor Jones has played enough to merit award consideration, but their combined production resembles the résumé of a Most Valuable Player candidate.
Jones and Purdy started eight and nine games, respectively, and combined to rank fifth in the NFL in QBR (68.4) and passing yards (4,157), third in completion percentage (69.3%) and fourth in touchdown passes (33). The two — who first met on Purdy’s 2017 recruiting visit to Alabama when Jones was a redshirt freshman and occasionally throw together in Florida in the offseason — enjoy that success because of their bond.
«When a starting quarterback goes down, sometimes that could be the season,» Purdy said. «He stepped right in and kept the ship rolling. … It wasn’t just ‘Let’s squeeze by’ wins. He looked great doing it. And he’s been ready still even since I came back.
«To have two guys who can go in and play at a high level, there’s nothing better.»
passed on him in favor of Trey Lance after trading up to the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL draft, Jones went to the New England Patriots. He played well as a rookie but struggled in his final two seasons there. He was then traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a 2024 sixth-round pick and was Trevor Lawrence’s backup last season. Jones started seven games, including the final five when Lawrence went on injured reserve, and finished with a 36.6 QBR, which would have ranked 31st in the NFL had he qualified.
Entering free agency for the first time in March, Jones had some ideas about what he wanted. He prioritized practical matters including a proven quarterback system such as Shanahan’s and the chance to learn from a successful signal-caller like Purdy.
Jones, who noticed that Sam Darnold’s career revitalization had begun in San Francisco, touched base with Purdy about the possibility of teaming up during their shared offseason workouts in Jacksonville, where Jones is from and Purdy spends time working with throwing coaches Tom Gormely and Will Hewlett.
Beyond the X’s and O’s, Jones also wanted his third NFL stop to provide something his previous two hadn’t: the chance to be himself and rediscover the joy he had playing football in college.
«You want to be the same guy you are on the field as you are off the field because if you have to change, it’s not going to be good because you’re thinking about things you’re not supposed to think about,» Jones said.
Jones, who said he wasn’t allowed to listen to music before games in previous NFL stops, found himself on social media searching for videos of the 49ers’ Bumpboxx entrance on game days. He watched players such as left tackle Trent Williams leading the Niners out of the tunnel with hip-hop blaring from a speaker and pictured himself dancing near the front of the line.
«New England runs things different over there,» said receiver Kendrick Bourne, who played with Jones in New England and now with the Niners. «It’s a different system. It’s more militant. And here it’s more relaxed. … The Patriots taught us a lot, but here it allows you to prevail in who you are.»
A FaceTime call with Shanahan sealed Jones’ decision. It was validated weeks later when, after a spring practice, Jones watched Shanahan break down film of that day’s workout.
Jones sat in awe as Shanahan offered insight on all three phases of the game in painstaking detail. Jones eagerly took notes on all of it, saying he treated every day like a rookie starting from scratch in case his number was called.
Little did Jones know that just two games into the season, he would need to put that study to use.
Stepping in for an injured Purdy against New Orleans in Week 2 might have been a recipe for disaster for most backup quarterbacks in a new system. But Jones’ approach, paired with the repeated message from Lombardi to embrace all that comes with playing the most high-pressure position in sports, allowed him to settle in quickly after a shaky first quarter.
Jones threw for 279 yards and three touchdowns in a win. Purdy would return two weeks later before aggravating the toe injury in a Week 4 loss to Jacksonville, opening the door for Jones to build on what he’d learned.
Williams gave Jones the invitation he’d wanted ever since he joined the 49ers, asking him to move to the front of the Bumpboxx line.
«You can just tell that’s his vibe,» Williams said. «That’s Mac. Mac has got a lot of flavor to him. … I could see him itching to, he wanted to, he might as well.»
After eight starts, Jones ranked second in the NFL in passing yards per game (268.9), ninth in completion percentage (69.6%) and 10th in yards per attempt (7.4). His 63.8 QBR still ranks eighth among quarterbacks with at least eight starts.
The Niners went 5-3 with Jones, leaving them in the playoff mix with the backup reestablishing his value as a potential starter for another QB-needy team in 2026 should San Francisco receive a worthwhile trade offer. But because Jones signed a two-year, $7 million deal, the Niners have the option of keeping their quarterback depth in place for another year.
«I’ve put some thought into it, but I just feel like I want to finish this year really strong and not get distracted by things that are out of my control,» Jones said. «I definitely feel like I got the train back on the tracks, and I’m going to work very hard to continue that. I don’t know what’s going to happen, and I’m on a two-year deal, so that’s really all I can say about it. But I do believe that I played good football, and the scary part is I can play even better. I believe that.»
Adrian Martinez and Kurtis Rourke, a favorite pastime is kicking around various conspiracy theories with Lombardi serving as de facto traffic cop. The moon landing is a popular debate, not so much because anyone believes the conspiracies, but in the delicate ecosystem of the room, it’s always important to have opposing viewpoints.
Shanahan even occasionally joins in the fun, offering stories from his coaching and playing career that can lighten the mood before everyone gets down to business. Rourke, a rookie seventh-round pick out of Indiana who is on the non-football injury list, said the group has talked about «pretty much everything you could imagine» in those pre-meeting discussions.
All of it is meant to provide levity to a job that requires plenty of monotony, and it creates a closeness that can bring joy in the tedium.
«The best way I can describe our room is it’s more like a friend group rather than just a work group,» Rourke said.
That has manifested in many ways this season. When Purdy was out and Jones was starting, Purdy stayed tuned into the playcalls, regularly offering his teammate tips on even the tiniest bit of minutiae.
During installation periods at practice, Purdy would notice things such as Jones using a cadence that wouldn’t pair with a certain motion, a seemingly small matter that could throw off the timing of an entire play.
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«He kind of would catch me,» Jones said. «A lot of guys, maybe they wouldn’t have said something or whatever. They wouldn’t have thought to think, ‘Let’s help this guy out a little bit and make sure that he’s doing it how I did it so that it runs the same way.'»
According to Purdy, that has been a two-way street with Jones finding ways to help him, too. Whether it’s offering insights on how certain coordinators like to defend certain plays or Jones ensuring that Purdy is properly hydrated, he has jumped back into the supporting role headfirst.
When the 49ers beat the Indianapolis Colts on Dec. 22, Jones checked that Purdy, who was playing through a triple-digit fever, the chills and sinus issues, was drinking plenty of fluids and taking IVs. Purdy threw for 295 yards and five touchdowns in what Jones jokingly called his «flu game.»
«We’ve gotten along great in terms of having each other’s backs,» Purdy said. «Our relationship is legit and real and authentic in terms of building each other up.»
The dynamic extends to Rourke and Martinez, too. Rourke, who is out for the year with a knee injury suffered in college, has watched Purdy closely, noting that the starter has carved out a successful path despite being the last pick in the draft.
Jones has done similar for Martinez, who has bounced around various practice squads and the UFL since going undrafted out of Kansas State in 2022. Late in a Nov. 2 win against the New York Giants, Jones pulled himself from the game, approaching Martinez on the sideline and telling him to go in. Martinez kneeled out the clock, logging his first regular-season snap.
«He didn’t have to do that,» Martinez said. «And for me to get my first snap in that way, I mean, it meant a lot. He just kind of made the call and I was ready to go.»
Cleveland Browns, Purdy faked a handoff to running back Christian McCaffrey and raced off the left side for a 2-yard touchdown. Purdy immediately dropped the ball and broke out the Dougie, the dance named for 1980s rapper Doug E. Fresh and brought back into the mainstream by the 2010 song from Cali Swag District «Teach Me How to Dougie.»
Purdy has never shied away from celebrations, but dancing had rarely been part of the repertoire. As it turns out, Purdy has long annoyed his wife, Jenna, by regularly practicing in their kitchen, but never did it out on the field. In the following weeks, Purdy made it a staple, drawing laughter and support from teammates.
«When you see a quarterback that can get the tedious work done and be super serious, but then when we’re successful let his hair down and celebrate a little bit, it’s not something that you come across too often,» Williams said. «It energizes everyone else.»
In Purdy’s case, it shows not only that there has been much to celebrate but also that he feels comfortable and confident after the injury.
Since Purdy took over as San Francisco’s starter in 2022, the only quarterback in the NFL with a better QBR than his 69.8 is Buffalo’s Josh Allen. Before the season finale against Seattle, teammates believed Purdy was playing his best football since returning, and that confidence remains entering the postseason. That he has done it without the usual cast of household names next to him, save for McCaffrey and tight end George Kittle, only bolsters that confidence.
In San Francisco’s final seven games, Purdy ranked fourth in QBR and ninth in passing yards per game, and he accounted for 19 total touchdowns, third most in that span. Those numbers came despite a three-interception performance against the Carolina Panthers and a 22.8 QBR against Seattle, the fifth worst for a game in his career. The Niners went 6-1 in that stretch and locked up the playoff berth.
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«He’s a special football player,» McCaffrey said. «He’s one of the best quarterbacks in the league and somebody who can make a play on any given snap. He’s grown in the sense that now he might be a little more comfortable dancing and all that stuff.»
For the 49ers to make a run in the postseason, Purdy and the offense will have to bounce back from their season-ending stinker against Seattle. Without defensive ends Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams, and linebacker Fred Warner (at least for now), the defense is just trying to hold it together. It’s Purdy & Co. who will be asked to carry the freight for any deep playoff run.
Should Purdy have a setback, Jones is staying prepared. Either way, the two quarterbacks their teammates call «Glock Purdy» and «Mac-10» (Jones and Purdy provided the offensive line with T-shirts with those monikers and have a custom handshake with each other paying homage to the nicknames), will be leading the way and leaning on each other.
What happens after the season remains to be seen but neither quarterback wants this ride to end any time soon.
«People ask me about it, I get it,» Jones said. «But at the same time, I’m dialed in. I love the guys here and don’t want to be a distraction. I know that I possibly could be needed at a very critical part of the season, and so your job as the backup quarterback is to save the season. If I have to do that, I know I’m going to be ready.»
