Backup quarterback Mac Jones’ 2025 season was all about keeping the San Francisco 49ers’ offense afloat while Brock Purdy reeled from a turf-toe injury. But what he showcased was enough for Jones to be back on the 49ers’ books with a new number that says exactly what the front office thinks of him: useful, dependable, and not expensive enough to complicate anything.

“The 49ers and QB Mac Jones agreed to a revised contract for this season, adding a $300,000 roster bonus,” Tom Pelissero reported on X. “Jones is now set to make $3.55 in 2026, with another $2.25 available in incentives, before he’s scheduled to hit free agency next March.”

Jones had originally signed a two-year, $8.41 million contract with the Niners last season. Under that original contract, he was set to make around $3.21 million in 2026, combining his base salary ($1.4M), signing bonus ($1.41M), restructure bonus ($300,000), and workout bonus ($100,000). Now, that price tag balloons to a potential $5.8 million.

Jones played 11 games last season, starting eight with a 5-3 record. The 2,151 yards he threw for, and the 13 touchdowns he brought in, were enough to get him this pay raise. In fact, by Week 9, Jones had helped the team improve to 6-3, and there were genuine questions about whether he would remain the starter when Purdy returned from rehab. But head coach Kyle Shanahan had made one thing clear right away: “This is Brock’s team.”

“If Brock’s good to go and everything, and can play like Brock, there’s no decision to be made,” Shanahan had said. “It’s just nice, as we go through this with Brock–the uncertainty of the toe–it is cool to have someone playing as good as Mac is. But they’re not related.”

The new money also says the same thing: Jones isn’t here to change the ceiling of the offense; he is there to keep the floor from cracking if Purdy goes out again. But to also avoid such a scenario, the Niners have continued to build a group that can make life easier on their franchise quarterback.

The weapons around Purdy

Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano ranked all 32 franchises in terms of who has the best “supporting casts” around their quarterback, and the Niners ranked 7th highest on that list.

“The additions of wideouts Mike Evans and Christian Kirk really could put the Niners’ offense over the top, especially since they still have WR Rickey Pearsall and TE George Kittle catching passes and OT Trent Williams protecting the blind side,” Vacchiano wrote. “And of course, everything in this offense revolves around RB Christian McCaffrey, a perennial MVP contender. But every one of those guys comes with big injury concerns.”

Mike Evans is perhaps the biggest gamble on that list of players. DraftSharks flagged him with a 93% chance of injury in 2026. He had suffered a hamstring injury in Week 3, playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season. When he came back in Week 7, he got sidelined again – this time until December – with a shoulder clavicle fracture. A trail of injuries and missed time stretching back to 2014 doesn’t help either.

Ricky Pearsall’s injury status had been a talking point for the Niners all of last season. Losing tight end George Kittle and defensive end Nick Bosa was also a big setback. For a broader context, 49 players showed up on San Francisco’s injury report throughout last season.

San Francisco has the talent to make a deeper playoff run this season, but the risk is availability more than ability. That’s exactly why Jones’ contract update matters even more. The Niners have enough talent around Purdy to justify the investment, and enough injury risk around that talent to justify Mac Jones. That is the entire $5.8 million deal in one move.