The Cleveland Browns‘ quarterback situation is very much in flux heading into 2026.
Yes, Shedeur Sanders made the Pro Bowl, but let’s be honest: that was because of his name more than anything else. After all, he threw seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions while posting a 68.1 passer rating in 2025.
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The problem for the Browns is that this upcoming draft class is very thin on quarterbacks, so they may have to explore free agency or the trade market to find another answer under center.
Zac Jackson of The Athletic pitched a couple of options during an episode of The Ultimate Cleveland Sports show, with one of them being San Francisco 49ers quarterback Mac Jones.
“I don’t know that Mac Jones is the guy who’s going to come here that you pay the price for, but with the numbers, it makes a lot of sense,” Jackson said.
Jones played in 11 games and made eight starts in place of the injured Brock Purdy this past season, throwing for 2,151 yards, 13 touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 69.6 percent of his passes and posting a 97.4 passer rating.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Mac Jones. Credit: Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images.
The 27-year-old was originally selected by the New England Patriots with the 15th overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft and actually made the Pro Bowl during his rookie campaign, but he faded rather quickly.
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Jones’ last two years with the Patriots were a disaster, leading to New England shipping him to the Jacksonville Jaguars. He spent one season with the Jaguars in 2024, making seven starts while Trevor Lawrence dealt with injuries. He totaled eight passing touchdowns and eight picks.
The 49ers signed Jones to a two-year contract last offseason, so the Browns would need to part with some draft capital in order to land him.
That would be a very risky move for Cleveland, as Jones has still not yet shown that he is a legitimate starting signal-caller on the NFL level.
I’m not sure it’s the best idea for the Browns to part with serious assets to land Jones, who may very well have just been a product of Kyle Shanahan’s system this past year.
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Cleveland doesn’t exactly have many other options, but it’s important to remember that the Browns do have two first-round picks and could take Ty Simpson or Trinidad Chambliss toward the back end of Day 1.
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