Al Michaels just had to go there.
During the second quarter of the 49ers' matchup against the Rams on Thursday Night Football, the legendary broadcaster decided to stir the pot in the Bay Area. Coming back from a commercial break after quarterback Mac Jones led San Francisco on a 17-play, 76-yard drive that culminated on a touchdown pass to Christian McCaffrey and a 14-0 lead, Michaels brought up the elephant in the room.
"You look at Mac Jones," Michaels said on the Prime Video broadcast. "If he keeps this up, do you think you've got a little bit of a [QB] controversy in San Francisco? I don't want to start it, but I have to."
Jones had an incredible first half at SoFi Stadium, throwing for 179 yards and two touchdowns on 15-of-23 passing. It was enough to send San Francisco into the locker room with a 17-7 lead. And when the Rams battled back and tied the game at 20 in the fourth quarter, Jones steered San Francisco on a 62-yard drive to set up Eddy Pineiro's go-ahead 59-yard field goal.
Look, Brock Purdy is the franchise quarterback in San Francisco. The former "Mr. Irrelevant" signed a five-year contract worth $265 million with the 49ers back in May. But the way this season is going—combined with coach Kyle Shanahan's longtime pursuit of Jones—has those around the game like Michaels at least questioning where the 49ers go from here.
Purdy started Week 1—the 49ers' 17-13 win over the Seahawks. He missed the next two games due to a turf toe injury, and Jones stepped in and played well. In those two starts—both wins—Jones threw for 563 yards, four touchdowns and one interception while completing 66.3% of his passes.
Purdy returned in Week 4 and did not look great. He threw two interceptions and fumbled the ball away at midfield to end the 49ers' potential game-winning drive in a 26-21 loss to the Jaguars at Levi's Stadium.
Jones, on the flip side, looked the part again Thursday night. He's probably not the long-term answer in San Francisco. But what's better than a quarterback debate on a Thursday night?
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Al Michaels Suggests Mac Jones Is Creating a 49ers QB Controversy vs. Brock Purdy.
