Nick WagonerSep 19, 2025, 05:45 PM ET
- Nick Wagoner is an NFL reporter at ESPN. Nick has covered the San Francisco 49ers since 2016, having previously covered the St. Louis Rams for 12 years, including three years (2013 to 2015) at ESPN. In over a decade with the company, Nick has led ESPN's coverage of the Niners' 2019 and 2023 Super Bowl run, Colin Kaepernick's protest, the Rams making Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam's subsequent pursuit of a roster spot and the team's relocation and stadium saga.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Barring a significant last-minute change, the San Francisco 49ers will start Mac Jones at quarterback for a second consecutive week Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals.
Starter Brock Purdy is listed as questionable for Sunday as he works his way back from the toe injury that kept him out last week against the New Orleans Saints. And though Purdy was a limited participant in practice all three days this week and made what coach Kyle Shanahan called "a lot of progress" in his recovery, Shanahan wasn't keen on Purdy's chances of starting against Arizona.
"I think it's highly unlikely that he will start," Shanahan said Friday. "We're just trying to see where he's at to see if he can be a 2 or an emergency 3."
Shanahan said whether Purdy is in uniform as a backup to Jones will depend on how he feels over the next 48 hours. The Niners will see how Purdy is doing on Saturday and then must make some roster decisions on Saturday afternoon to determine whether Purdy can be the primary backup to Jones or whether they'll need to again elevate practice squad quarterback Adrian Martinez to be Jones' top backup.
According to league rules, if the Niners want Purdy to be the emergency No. 3 quarterback, the No. 2 quarterback (in this case Martinez) would have to be promoted to the active roster and could not just be a standard elevation who reverts to the practice squad on Monday.
All of that will play into the calculus when it comes to whether Purdy can be available against the Cardinals or whether he will be a pregame inactive like he was last week.
For his part, Purdy said Thursday he wants to play but also doesn't want to jeopardize any more games beyond this week.
"I want to play every game," Purdy said. "I want to be out there. You only get 17 regular-season games and every game matters, especially a divisional [game] going against the Cardinals. If you ask me, I'd love to, but I'm trying to be smart with my body here."
Wide receiver Jauan Jennings (ankle, shoulder) and guard Connor Colby (groin) are also listed as questionable. Jennings did not practice this week, while Colby, who was set to step into the starting lineup for an injured Ben Bartch, was hurt in Thursday's practice and was limited in Friday's session.
