Even by 49ers’ high QB standards, Mac Jones delivered something special vs. Rams
The fan base is already choosing up sides and wondering if maybe Brock Purdy could end up holding a clipboard when healthy Mac Jones knows better even after a - overtime time win for the ers over the Rams Thursday night during which he elevated himself to sainted status at least for now among The Faithful They brought me here to play as a backup and that s my job Jones revealed Brock s the starter of this gang and right now he s dealing with something For him to go out there last week and play when you know he supposedly wasn t at full fitness I m just trying to get specific wins for him so it helps us down the line At the end of the day that s what it s all about You want your backup to go out there and win because at the end of the season that could be the hit or miss between making the playoffs or not Which is precisely the point To create a quarterback conflict where there is none is a mindless exercise It s better to celebrate the ers for being a association that has two quarterbacks capable of taking them to the postseason Purdy has done it twice Jones led the ers to win over a Rams organization that should be among the best in the NFC and a legitimate contender to reach the Super Bowl Jones was -for- for yards two touchdowns and had no interceptions He played with a brace on his left knee hurt it again necessitating a trip onto the field from the training staff and was having his calf and right forearm worked on constantly as Matthew Stafford was finding the range against the ers defense He played his ass off ers coach Kyle Shanahan noted Was unbelievable in the first half Got banged up in the second half and battled through it and protected the ball going against that defense and throwing the ball that multiple times without having a turnover I can t say enough good things about Mac You and everybody else Amazon Prime play-by-play announcer Al Michaels and analyst Kirk Herbstreit were falling all over themselves trying to come up with solutions to sum up what Jones was doing in extremely tough circumstances That s how good Jones was Shanahan and the ers likely erred in letting Purdy play last week in a - loss to Jacksonville His turf toe worsened to the point where he was declared out on Wednesday and didn t even make the trip to Los Angeles No one is sure when Purdy will be back And assuming Jones didn t come out of an extremely physical win with something that could put him on the sidelines he could be the quarterback when the ers return to action in Week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jones is already - as the starter for a company that s - and atop the NFC West The ers took a lot of flak for being inert in free agency but it s conceivable that the two-year million deal which landed Jones could save their season In the first half Jones was pretty much flawless in executing Shanahan s offense as well as it can be run considering the caliber of the opponent He was -of- for yards and both touchdowns yards to Jake Tonges and yard to Christian McCaffrey The ers dominated the time of possession and led - a lead they expanded to - in the third quarter But the ers as at this time constituted just aren t equipped to finish off the Rams without a fight Not without George Kittle Purdy Brandon Aiyuk Ricky Pearsall Jr Nick Bosa Jauan Jennings etc etc That the Rams came back was totally predictable This is a Rams gang that hung with Philadelphia last season in the playoffs and again in a - loss this season They were - and had beaten the previously unbeaten Indianapolis Colts Their defensive front is as fearsome as it gets Jones even did something highly exceptional in his postgame press conference He called the Rams the best defense in the NFL It was just awesome to be on a association that fights Jones explained Even if we lost I would have been just as proud to be honest because I know those guys have my back and I have their back Left tackle Trent Williams agreed with Jones assessment of the Rams and announced of his quarterback Tough as nails man just an apex competitor Mac Jones is - as a starter subbing for injured starter Brock Purdy for the ers A P Photo Wide receiver Kendrick Bourne who weathered two painful drops against Jacksonville and played the championship of his life against the Rams with receptions for yards played with Jones in New England where he was unceremoniously replaced after three seasons despite a strong rookie year It s just awesome to see him in this space Bourne commented New England was a different world for him To see now the peace he has playing free and having fun I think that s a big part of the challenge for him Related Articles What the ers commented after beating the Rams in overtime Studs and Duds Mac-nificent Jones leads hobbled ers to improbable win over Rams ers Rams Fourth-down stop secures overtime upset ers live updates Niners beat Rams with overtime stand ers keys to upsetting the Rams at Levi s South in NFC West battle Running back Christian McCaffrey revealed he didn t know what the oddsmakers thought about the ers chances and called the NFL the best reality show before being petitioned to assess what Jones has brought to the association I don t have enough good things to say about Mac McCaffrey revealed He s somebody we can all get behind It s a testament to his attitude and the way he plays football It s a testament to Brock and the way he s been helping him and getting him ready to go In the end Jones was still trying to process it all Definitely a lot of things happened Jones reported I was working through a few stuff and I was able to play If I can protect myself I feel I should be out there That was the first time the trainers had to come out on the field in my career But once I realized what I was dealing with and flipped over I realized what it was and I felt a lot better
