Kyle Shanahan Breaks Silence on Brock Purdy vs. Mac Jones Debate
Generally, when a 6-4 team gets its franchise quarterback back from injury, there’s a huge sense of relief. That’s not exactly the case in San Francisco, where 49ers starting QB Brock Purdy is edging closer to returning from the turf toe injury that has sidelined him since Week 4.
The expectation inside and outside the building is that he has a good chance to play Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. Niners coach Kyle Shanahan has said as much, but the way backup Mac Jones has used Purdy’s absence to resurrect his own career has ignited a full-blown debate among fans and analysts about who should tart.
Jones is 5–3 as a starter for San Francisco this season, completing 69.6% of his passes for 2,151 yards, 13 touchdowns and six interceptions. It’s fair to argue the 49ers are still in the playoff hunt despite a rash of injuries on both sides of the ball because of Jones.
In the midst of calls for Jones to start over Purdy, Shanahan has made it resoundingly clear which signal-caller he favors as his QB1.
Kyle Shanahan on Whether He Wants Brock Purdy or Mac Jones as His Starter: ‘Not a Hard Decision’
GettyKyle Shanahan spoke candidly about Brock Purdy and Mac Jones, stating which QB he wants as his starter.
First, a bit of context. After Jones’ solid showing this season, calls for the former first-round QB to get the nod over Purdy have intensified.
FOX Sports analyst Tom Brady argued this week that San Francisco should keep riding “the hot hand” with Jones even after Purdy is cleared. Former 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman made a similar case, saying the team should stick with Jones given how well he’s played in Shanahan’s system. It is not often that a former MVP and a franchise great worry publicly that a team might go back to its $265 million quarterback too quickly.
Inside the building, though, Shanahan has been almost stubbornly uncomplicated about who the team’s starter is.
“Not a hard decision,” Shanahan said on November 12. “It’s just more about Brock’s health. It’s been awesome how Mac has played. He has been great. But, we’ve got a lot of confidence in Brock and we know Brock will play at a high level too as long as he’s healthy.”
In six quarters of action this season, Purdy has thrown four touchdowns and four interceptions. It was a bit of a slow start considering he finished first and seventh in QBR in 2023 and 2024, respectively. But Shanny is comfortable with what Purdy brings, and the Niners coach says he’s not interested in what the outside world has to say.
“Anytime a backup quarterback comes in and plays good, that’s all anyone talks about,” Shanahan said. “I don’t think anyone talks about what people have done in the past. Whether it’s Brock or whether it’s anybody. That’s just how the world works with media or anybody. So, I don’t look too much into that stuff at all. We all know how good Brock’s played in the past. … I know when Brock comes back, he’ll play the same way he always has, like a very high-level quarterback.”
A Look Ahead to Week 11
Sunday’s trip to Arizona, against a 3–6 Cardinals team starting Jacoby Brissett, would be a great time to ease Purdy back into the starting lineup. If he’s ready to go, that is.
Shanahan says the way Purdy looks in practice, a return feels near.
“You can just feel it,” Shanahan said about Purdy. “A guy you’ve been around for a while like I have Brock, you can just feel how the ball comes off, how he moves, how he reacts. … Usually, you can feel it on the field.”
With a banged up Arizona squad next in line, will we finally see Purdy return to the lineup? It sure sounds like he’s close.
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes Sounds Off on Major Sports Controversy
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes may take calculated risks on the field, but he’s apparently not much of a fan of gambling outside the sport.
The sports world has been rocked by a series of major scandals involving sports gambling, which has ensnared athletes from the MLB and NBA in criminal investigations. The NFL has already cracked down on gambling among players and is considering further measures to limit wagers on the sport in the wake of the scandals.
Mahomes added his input this week, saying he doesn’t see the appeal in gambling.
Patrick Mahomes ‘Stays Away’ From Gambling
When asked about the recent arrests this week related to sports gambling, Mahomes said he makes sure to distance himself from the gambling world and recognizes the dangerous potential of sports gambling.
“They let us know, the NFL and NFLPA tell us all the different rules that you can and cannot do,” Mahomes said, via Pro Football Talk. “I just stay away from it. I don’t want to put myself in that position. Your life is so great, why mess with it?”
Sports gambling has long been a controversial topic, dating back to MLB great Pete Rose’s lifetime ban for betting on the sport. There have been a series of troubling developments recently, including the arrests of Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier in October for their role in an alleged gambling ring.
Mahomes said there is another dark side to gambling — the intense pressure, and often abuse, that players suffer from fans who have money tied to their performances.
“It gets weird sometimes when fans talk about it,” Mahomes said. “You’re just trying to live your life and play the games and they get really attached — even more than the regular fans — because they have money on the line. To them, I would just say don’t do anything that you can’t recuperate or live without. It’s a crazy world we live in these days and see all that happen, but I think you just focus on the football, focus on the sport you love and why you’re here and you won’t have to worry about that other stuff.”
NFL Could Crack Down More
The NFL has enacted new, stricter rules on gambling in recent years. That includes a ban on gambling in all team facilities — which extends to hotels when teams travel.
In the wake of the recent developments, the NFL is reportedly looking to restrict certain forms of sports gambling. CBS Sports reported that the league sent a memo to teams saying they have engaged decision-makers “to limit — and where possible [prohibit] altogether — prop bets in the NFL.”
As the CBS Sports report noted, prop bets have been at the center of the recent sports gambling controversies.
“The latter two categories are types of bets that have created controversy in baseball and basketball. In MLB, two Cleveland Guardians pitchers were indicted this week on conspiracy charges related to the players allegedly working with bettors on specific types of pitches they would throw.”
