This offseason has been a busy one for the San Francisco 49ers quarterback room, as the team watched Joshua Dobbs leave for a two-year, $8 million deal with the New England Patriots and Brandon Allen sign a one-year, $1.42 million contract with the Tennessee Titans.

San Francisco also gave starting quarterback Brock Purdy a five-year, $265 million extension after three strong years to start his career. However, with Dobbs and Allen out, the 49ers needed a backup for Purdy, and they landed on 2021 first-round pick Mac Jones.

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Jones, 26, spent four seasons at Alabama, winning two national championships and earning both All-American and All-SEC honors once before the Patriots took him with pick No. 15.

While Jones had success as a rookie, completing 67.6% of his passes for 3,801 yards, 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions on his way to the Pro Bowl, he struggled mightily the following two seasons in New England (65% completion percentage, 5,117 yards, 24 touchdowns and 23 interceptions).

He was eventually benched for Bailey Zappe and then traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a sixth-round pick last offseason. In his lone year in Jacksonville, he completed 65.3% of his passes for 1,672 yards, eight touchdowns and eight interceptions while leading the team to a 2-5 record.

After landing a two-year, $7 million deal with the 49ers this offseason, Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano has ranked Jones as the sixth-best backup quarterback in the NFL, behind Jaxson Dart (Giants), Jake Browning (Bengals), Daniel Jones (Colts), Jimmy Garoppolo (Rams) and Kirk Cousins (Falcons).

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“Jones will finally get to learn from Kyle Shanahan after various reports stated that he was Shanahan’s first choice in the lead-up to the 2021 NFL draft before the team ultimately selected Trey Lance with the No. 3 pick,” Manzano wrote. “After mixed results with the Patriots and Jaguars, Jones will back up Brock Purdy, who just received a hefty pay raise with his five-year, $265 million contract extension. Jones sometimes gets a little reckless, but he has a knack for pushing the ball downfield. “

Coming out of the draft, Jones was seen as the prospect with the highest floor, and that’s ideal for a backup quarterback. If he can keep San Francisco afloat if Purdy goes down with an injury in 2025, his signing will have been worth it.

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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers’ Mac Jones ranked as one of the best backup QBs in the NFL