With 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy sustaining a toe injury during the team's Week 1 win over the Seahawks, backup quarterback Mac Jones has stepped in and played well for San Francisco.
Jones has started three of the 49ers' five games this season and led them to wins in each of those contests—including a crucial divisional win over the Rams last Thursday. Jones, who many believed the 49ers would take at No. 3 in the 2021 NFL draft, has fit well into Kyle Shanahan's system, completing 66.7% of his passes for 905 yards, six touchdowns and one interception. Even while dealing with his own injury and the 49ers' run game underperforming thus far, Jones has helped the 49ers rank No. 1 in passing offense and No. 5 in total offense through five games.
Jones's strong start has spurred some conversations outside the 49ers about a quarterback controversy, but 49ers general manager John Lynch said Thursday on KNBR that there is no tension in the quarterback room.
"A cool quality about Brock Purdy is he's one of the most self-assured people in a very humble way. It's one of the things that appealed to us," Lynch said. "He's very confident in his abilities, but he's just a good guy. He's got an incredible amount of humility. ... It is always you want to be the guy out there. I do wholeheartedly believe that Brock is nothing but happy for our team. He's working his tail off to get back. I think we all feel blessed and fortunate that we found a backup who can go in and play like a starter and earn us tough, hard fought wins."
Jones also made clear after his clutch performance against the Rams that Purdy is the starter. "Brock's the starter of this team," Jones said last week. "Right now he's dealing with something and for him to go out last week and play when you probably know he's not at full health shows a lot. I'm just trying to get some wins for this team so it helps us down the line."
There is currently no quarterback controversy for the 49ers. While Jones has played well, the 49ers have long made clear that Purdy is their guy, and will remain the starting quarterback once he's healthy. What Jones's performance does do is allow Purdy to take his time before returning. Purdy is dealing with turf toe—an injury that notoriously can linger—so Jones's play alleviates any pressure for him to return until he's fully ready.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as 49ers GM Addresses Whether There's Tension in QB Room Between Mac Jones, Brock Purdy.
