Patriots Consider Mac Jones Trade to 49ers Amid Quarterback Transition
It’s increasingly clear that the Mac isn’t coming back. The New England Patriotsand#039; The Mac Jones era came to an abrupt end. While New England (4-11) has been far from dominant since Jones was officially fired, lukewarm offensive development has seeped through many of the cracks in Bailey Zappa’s steering wheel. Despite injuries to offensive weapons like Hunter Henry and Rhamondre Stevenson, Zappe is off to a 2-2 start, answering Jones’s and#039; winning result in just four starts.
If this was college soccer, Mac would probably be in the transfer window by now. But in the NFL, he’ll have to wait until his team moves him to a better position via trade. With one year remaining on Jones’ contract when he arrived in New England as the 15th pick in the 2021 draft, Patriots management is faced with a decision: They will be forced to eat more than $4.9 million if they release him every year.
early on, they could have Jones compete with Zappa to be the backup to a presumed replacement found this spring and early in the draft, or trade him for potential backups. Spotrac’s salary cap experts suggest the latter, suggesting a deal that sees Jones head west to the San Francisco 49ers.
As Spotracand#039; As Michael Ginnitti points out, Zapp is easier to keep and his recent play has probably earned him a bit more room if the front office decides to clean house.
Will they buy him out with his fully guaranteed $2.78 million salary?andquot; asks Ginnitti. andquot;Or will they keep him lined up to compete as needed? Current QB1 Bailey Zappe will sit on a non-guaranteed minimum salary of $985,000 next season.andquot; San Francisco’s scouting situation is quite interesting as the team has decided to move the offense entirely to Brock Purdy.
The 49ers traded 2021 third-round pick Trey Lance to Dallas late last season and now hold Sam Darnold and Brandon Allen in the Purdy crisis. San Francisco lost both Purdy and then backup Josh Johnson in last year’s NFC title game, prompting the NFL to adjust current undrafted quarterback procedures to allow for an emergency third arm in case the top two go down.
A move to the Bay Area would likely give Jones what he needs at this point in his career: an inconsistent year to watch and report to a vaunted offensive mind like Kyle Shanahan and potentially compete for the AFC East draft sweeper.
Darnold is trying to get his NFL career back on track. In New England, Zappe played at least well enough to warrant a chance for backups, so this is a deal that works for all parties, even if it’s a relative blip on Foxborough’s radar. in the long run. The two games with Jones on the roster probably went to New England. The first comes on Sunday when the Patriots face the surging Buffalo Bills at Orchard Park (1 p.m. ET, CBS).
