​Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. Despite the San Francisco 49ers management publicly suggesting they’d like to keep Mac Jones around as Brock Purdy’s backup, the real-world NFL landscape will likely determine whether that plan can hold. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk recently weighed in on when a trade might realistically become possible, outlining a window that could open for a quarterback in need of a change of scenery.
Florio suggested that Mac Jones could be traded to a team that finds itself in need of a quarterback between Week 1 and the Tuesday after Week 9, a period during which injuries can reshape teams’ plans. He recalled a year, perhaps 2023, when quarterback injuries hit at an alarming rate, saying, “There was a year, I think it was 2023, when quarterbacks were dropping like flies.” In that season, notable signal-callers such as Joe Burrow, Kirk Cousins, Justin Herbert, Daniel Jones, Anthony Richardson, Aaron Rodgers, and Deshaun Watson all endured injuries severe enough to end their seasons. While no one wishes for injuries, Florio warned that the football calendar could drive teams to reevaluate their quarterback depth, potentially bringing Jones into the mix as a desirable trade target.
From there, Florio outlined a few scenarios that might spark a transaction. He pointed out that some years see relatively few injuries to starting quarterbacks, but even then, a window could open for a team to fetch a backup like Jones. He highlighted that if an injury occurs during training camp or the preseason, those are often times when quarterback injuries are rarer—yet the timing could still be pivotal for a trade if a team suddenly needs a short-term starter or a first-round pick is earmarked for a future long-term solution.
Looking ahead, Florio noted that Jones will become a free agent in March 2027. If he manages to play well this season, he could emerge as a candidate to join a new team and compete for a starting job, or at the very least to be the veteran presence who steps in as the starter for a six-week stretch before a team uses a first-round pick on a quarterback they hope will be their long-term answer. The implication is that Jones’ market could expand if he proves himself capable of contributing on a contender’s roster.
Another important distinction Florio made is what would happen if Jones is needed early in the season due to an injury to Brock Purdy. In that scenario, the 49ers would likely refrain from trading Jones, since Purdy would be healthy enough to lead the offense and the team would ideally be clicking on all cylinders. In other words, Jones would become largely unnecessary to the immediate plans if Purdy remains the starter and is performing at a high level.
When it’s all put together, the overarching takeaway is that there is some degree of inevitability in recognizing that Jones could be a trade candidate, given the typical volatility of the NFL quarterback market. Florio did not present a single, locked-in “window” for a trade; instead, he described a broad timeline that spans from the opening weeks of the season through the trade deadline. He made clear that the conditions under which a trade comes to fruition—such as injuries to other teams’ quarterbacks, a team’s immediate need, and a team’s assessment of Jones’s value—will ultimately drive any decision to move him.
In short, there isn’t a fixed, airtight moment when a Mac Jones trade becomes likely. Florio’s prognosis centers on the general logic that the quarterback market is fluid and reactive: if injuries accumulate among starting signal-callers or if teams lose faith in their development on playoff rosters, a backup like Jones could become an attractive option for a franchise seeking a prudent, short-term or transitional starter. Conversely, if Brock Purdy continues to perform at a high level and remains healthy, there would be little incentive for the 49ers to part with Jones. The bottom line is that the door remains ajar for a potential Jones trade, contingent on the broader injuries, team needs, and the evolving landscape of NFL quarterback depth through the season.