Former Alabama QB Mac Jones in line to start again in Week 6, per report
By Mark Kern
Published:
Former Alabama QB Mac Jones is having a career revival in San Francisco, where he has had to fill in for injured 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy. The Niners are 4-1 on the season and in first place in the NFC West, and they are 3-0 when Jones starts.
While nothing has been officially announced, multiple reports on Thursday suggested that Jones is in line to once again be the starting quarterback in Week 6 when San Francisco takes on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Purdy did not practice on Thursday.
CBS Sports added that Jones is “likely” to start over the weekend.
In his 3 starts this season, Jones has played as well as any quarterback in the NFL. He has thrown for 905 yards, 6 touchdowns with only 1 interception. He arguably had the best game of his career last Thursday when he threw for 342 yards and 2 touchdowns in an overtime win over the Rams.
The 49ers have had to deal with injuries as much as any team in the NFL over the past few years, and that once again is the case this season. Tight end George Kittle has played in only 1 game this season, while No. 1 receiver Brandon Aiyuk is still not back from his torn ACL last season.
Jones is proving to be the latest quarterback who needed a change of scenery to revive his career, following in the footsteps of names like Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold, players who went from potential busts to franchise leaders.
Ironically enough, Jones will face Mayfield this weekend in a battle of two first-place teams in the NFC. While the Niners are still Purdy’s team, it is going to be tough for coach Kyle Shanahan to bench Jones if he continues to perform at the level he has been.
