The San Francisco 49ers have a decision to make on Mac Jones, but the bar for moving him is clear: don’t deal him unless a second-round pick is on the table.
That’s the position Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton laid out, and it comes with a straightforward warning for San Francisco. Jones is too valuable a backup to let go cheaply, even if a team like the New York Jets could come calling. The 49ers, per the reporting, have no interest in trading him for anything less than meaningful return.
"San Francisco 49ers: Trade QB Mac Jones for a 2027 2nd-round pick," Moton writes. "Because of quarterback Brock Purdy's injury history, the 49ers should keep Jones unless a team offers at least a second-round pick."
The logic is simple. Jones is set to hit free agency after 2026, and if he keeps building on what he did in 2025, he figures to draw plenty of attention on the market. Teams may be looking at him as the next Sam Darnold-type swing.
His 2025 numbers back up that kind of buzz. Jones threw for 2,151 yards, 13 touchdowns and six interceptions, completed 69.6% of his passes, went 5-3, and posted a 97.4 passer rating, the best of his career.
Moton’s asking price also reflects what the 49ers would be staring at if they simply let Jones walk. A third-round compensatory pick would be the likely return, and that wouldn’t come close to matching the value of trading him now. In that light, a second-rounder becomes the line that makes the deal worthwhile.
So the message from this evaluation is pretty direct: Jones has real trade value, and San Francisco should listen if the right offer arrives. But unless a team is willing to part with at least a second-round pick, the 49ers should hold onto one of the league’s best backup quarterbacks.
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