ESPN analyst says Mac Jones would be a top-10 NFL QB if he had been drafted by 49ers
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ESPN NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky said on Friday during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show that he believes former Alabama star Mac Jones would be a top-10 NFL quarterback if the San Francisco 49ers drafted him.
Instead, Jones was drafted 15th overall in 2021 by the New England Patriots, and things didn’t go as planed for Jones in New England during his 3 seasons there. Jones went just 18-24 with the Patriots, throwing 46 touchdown passes against 36 interceptions, and he was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars before the 2024 season.
Jones got some playing time in Jacksonville in 2024 because Trevor Lawrence couldn’t stay healthy, but he went just 2-5 with 8 touchdowns and 8 interceptions in what turned out to be his only season there. Then, in a twist of fate, he signed a 2-year, $7 million contract in March with the 49ers, the team that could have drafted Jones at No. 3 in 2021 but instead went with Trey Lance.
Four years later, Jones was finally a 49er, and with initial starter Brock Purdy injured, he’s gotten extended time as San Francisco’s starter and has flourished. The latest example was Thursday night’s thrilling 26-23 overtime victory over the Rams, when he completed 33 of 49 passes for 342 yards with 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.
Jones, who led Alabama to the national championship in 2020, when he threw for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns, has done nothing but win with San Francisco so far. He’s also led the 49ers to wins over the Saints and Cardinals, and he’s already thrown for 905 yards with 6 TDs and just 1 interception while relieving the oft-injured Purdy. Orlovsky knows what winning football looks like, and he firmly believes that Jones’ status in the NFL QB hierarchy would be different had a different team drafted him, like the 49ers in 2021.
“I truly believe if he went to San Francisco at No. 3 that year that he’d be one of the top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL,” said Orlovsky, who also referenced Jones’ maturity level improving greatly after showing “bad body language” earlier in his career.
The performance on Thursday night against a division rival, with everybody watching, clinched it for Orlovsky regarding Jones.
“That’s the best game I’ve ever seen him play in the NFL. I was blown away with how good he was,” Orlovsky said. “The timing of those throws was nuts. These are big-time throws. It was a phenomenal game. What a win by the 49ers.”
Here is the full clip of Orlovsky’s take on Jones on Friday:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
