49ers’ good humor man Mac Jones ready for his opportunity replacing Brock Purdy
SANTA CLARA Mac Jones came to the ers to back up Brock Purdy after washing out in both New England and Jacksonville working his hardest to be ready when called upon It happened sooner than anyone imagined when Purdy came out of a season-opening - win over Seattle with toe and left shoulder injuries which could sideline him for multiple games If that s not enough to worry ers fans quarterback Adrian Martinez will be promoted from the practice squad as the backup and he s been with the unit all of two weeks It s the front side of the season here and I feel prepared Jones revealed Friday I ve been working for this and fortunate to have started I think this is my th match in the NFL so I have my routine down and I m looking forward to the opportunity Jones will start Sunday s encounter in New Orleans against the Saints a m PST Fox If there s any concern about whether Jones is up to the task it s been well hidden Teammates have lauded both his skill set and ability to briskly adapt to coach Kyle Shanahan s system as well as his presence in the locker room After starting out leading the Patriots to a playoff berth as a rookie to being a backup for a poor Jacksonville unit in his fourth season Jones has plenty of experiences both good and bad to draw from I ve been fortunate to play in a lot of different roles and your job as a quarterback is to either hand it off or throw it and that s how simple I m going to keep it Jones reported That s when I play my best when I have a low pulse and just go out there and go through my reads and have that intensity and focus You ve got to be ready to play and have a system that works for you Shanahan stated he saw the same thing from Jones he s seen every week since he signed a two-year million contract with the ers It s been awesome Shanahan noted The same this week as he has been all camp Our crew really believes in him our unit really enjoys him and he did a hell of a job this week in practice While Purdy s persona is more laid back and serious Jones by contrast is buoyant and quick with a joke among teammates I definitely think that s part of my personality and I play to have fun and try to win Jones disclosed It s hard when you re in the NFL and it s your job but winning is fun and I understand that I want to go out there and be loose Right tackle Colton McKivitz without delay picked up on Jones penchant for being light-hearted That s one cool thing about him even in the huddle he ll still laugh and crack a joke but when it s meeting time he locks in and commands the huddle McKivitz disclosed He likes to have fun but he s a winner He s proven that at Alabama and obviously now that we ve got him he s going to want to show chosen stuff on Sunday General manager John Lynch believes Jones has fit in perfectly with the gang and coaching staff Quarterback Mac Jones has won over teammates with his sense of humor as well as his ability to run the offense Shae Hammond Bay Area News Group What I can tell you is it s perhaps better than advertised better than what we thought he would be in terms of stepping in and just feeling like he was a real good fit for this offense Lynch noted on KNBR- Jones has already meshed with his teammates and also has friendships on the roster from college Brian Robinson Jr played with him at Alabama New England wide receiver Kendrick Bourne and Jacksonville tight end Luke Farrell I ve know him since I was years old Robinson declared We were kind of in the same situation early in our career second- and third-stringers We weren t playing much at the time We had to work our way up to those spots and we constantly developed I ve watched his whole process all the way up to this point and have no doubt he s ready for this opportunity At Alabama Jones passed for yards touchdowns and four interceptions in leading the Crimson Tide to a national championship Selected with the No pick in the first round in in the same draft the ers traded up and took Trey Lance No Jones was named the starter by Bill Belichick and led the Patriots to a - record and a Wild Card playoff berth It turned out to be the peak of his New England experience and one that Bourne saw up close after signing with New England in free agency Mac helped me when I transitioned over there Bourne noted It was his rookie year and I had one of my best years But things go how they go Every year is different Chosen are good a few are bad We both kind of fell victim to certain situations and things not going the way we planned He kind of took it on the chin and just to see him here and the gratification he has is great Delighted to be in a place where he can get back on track Jones ascertained himself on the field the other day with both Bourne and quarterbacks coach Mick Lombardi who was a New England assistant Mick s like Who would ve thought we would all be be standing here on a Thursday afternoon me Kendrick and Mick Jones disclosed Kind of crazy Martinez played at Nebraska Kansas State and preponderance in the past few days for the Birmingham Stallions of the UFL winning the league Majority Valuable Competitor award and leading his squad to a championship If Martinez is nervous or intimidated at the thought of taking over should something happen to Jones it s not apparent You come in you learn the offense you put in time and I wouldn t say it s been any different than any of the other processes I ve taken Martinez stated I m very confident I think that s part of my job whether you re a starter second string or practice squad Related Articles ers injury woes continue Trent Williams questionable against Saints The Bob Show DC Robert Saleh is here to save the ers season New ers kicker Eddy Pi eiro feels for published Jake Moody Challenge day hangouts fan-tastic Bay Area sports bars How a Redwood City burger sponsorship spurred the ers to their first Super Bowl title Martinez spent the Seattle championship with an ear piece where he could hear communication between Shanahan and Purdy and learn the play-calling rhythm and tournament tempo Shanahan conceded he d have to make specific adjustments to his play-calling should Martinez be needed He s prepared for it all but I ll have an idea of the stuff he likes more than others Shanahan mentioned I mean he s been here two weeks You don t tell a guy Hey just take these plays You try to tell him to learn the whole contest plan But I constantly want to know what he s more content with and and hopefully we can stick with that if the competition allows us to
