New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots appear to have found their successor to Tom Brady in Drake Maye, as he just led the team to their seventh-straight victory in Week 10. One of their former quarterbacks, Mac Jones, appears to be creating a controversy for his new team, the San Francisco 49ers.
Before the Pats landed Maye, they previously believed that Jones was Brady’s successor. After a solid rookie season, the offensive infrastructure surrounding Jones collapsed, and he played so poorly that he ended up getting traded in 2023.
Now with the 49ers, Jones has spent much of the 2025 campaign filling in for the injured Brock Purdy. During his time on the field, Jones has looked solid, throwing for 2,151 yards and 13 touchdowns in his eight starts, leading the team to a 5-3 record.
With questions about Purdy’s health continuing to linger, Jones’ standing as the team’s starter is tenuous to say the least. If you ask Brady, though, he thinks that San Fran should continue to ride the hot hand and stick with Jones, even once Purdy is healthy.
“You gotta go with the hot hand,” Brady said before the 49ers’ loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday. “Yes, you stay with him. I gotta believe that’s why I’m still sitting here today because they went with the hot hand about 25 years ago.”
Brady, of course, got his start back in 2001 when he replaced the injured Drew Bledsoe under center. Once Bledsoe was healthy enough to return, many folks figured he’d earn his starting job back. Instead, Bill Belichick stuck with Brady, and the rest is history.
Considering how Jones is now fresh off a loss (that admittedly wasn’t his fault), and the Niners just handed Purdy a five-year, $265 million contract extension over the season, it seems unlikely that the team will stick with Jones once its franchise quarterback is ready to return to action.
Still, Jones has sent a message across the league that he is capable of being a starting quarterback in the right offensive system. With Purdy’s injury status still murky, all eyes will be on the 49ers to see if Jones remains their starter in Week 11.
