Mac Jones Had Funny Line About Kyle Shanahan, 49ers Passing on Him in 2021 Draft

About a month before the 2021 NFL draft, the San Francisco 49ers traded up to the No. 3 pick in the draft, with plans of picking a quarterback to replace Jimmy Garoppolo and help improve their chances at winning a Super Bowl.

With the Jacksonville Jaguars expected to select Trevor Lawrence No. 1 and the New York Jets predicted to pick Zach Wilson at No. 2, the 49ers were widely expected to use the No. 3 pick to draft quarterback Mac Jones. Instead, the 49ers shocked on draft night by taking Trey Lance with the third pick, a move that turned out to be a bust.

After the 49ers passed on Jones, he was taken at No. 15 by the New England Patriots. Though Jones put in a successful rookie season and helped the Patriots make the playoffs, he did not see the same success over his next two years in New England and was later traded to the Jaguars.

In the four years since, the 49ers unexpectedly found their franchise quarterback in 2022 Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy, who just signed a massive extension with the team. To back Purdy up this year, the 49ers signed Jones, finally bringing him to the team that was originally expected to take him out of college.

While speaking to the media on Wednesday, Jones was asked if he and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan have addressed what happened in the 2021 draft. Jones joked in response, “Yeah, we got in a huge fight," prompting laughter from the room of reporters.

“Yeah, we got in a huge fight. Nah, I’m just kidding.”

Mac Jones had jokes after he was asked if he and Shanahan addressed whatever happened in 2021 😂 pic.twitter.com/vcKdgFwzgc
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) June 4, 2025

"We are cool," Jones continued. "Kyle and I texted a little bit. Once again, I always love watching their tape. When you look at stats around the league, they're always in the top-five, you see the little San Francisco logo. I always love watching what Kyle did throughout the years. To finally get in and learn it, it's been a little bit challenging, but also a great challenge. ... It's all gonna come together here, and I'm really excited to learn from Brock."