QB Mac Jones Press Conference

QB Mac Jones

Press Conference – October 23, 2025

San Francisco 49ers

What have you seen from the Houston Texans defense so far looking at film?

“Yeah, they’re really, really good. Top defense in the league, great front, great linebackers and really solid secondary. They play together. They played a lot of football together, to be honest, and really talented group, well-coached and definitely have a big challenge on Sunday.”

After going through a training camp here and seeing defensive coordinator Robert Saleh’s defense and then watching them on tape, do you see just schematic similarities? Is there anything you can draw from that at all?

“Yeah, a little bit. I think both have kind of done some different things. Like every coach that has a tree, people do their own things. They’re very sound like I said and definitely going to be a huge challenge. They’re very sound.”

It seems like this offense is designed to take advantage of linebackers. Does that jump out to you when a team has a really good linebacking core. Is that one of the things they jump out about them?

“Yeah, they have elite linebackers, and they have guys who have seen our type of offense a lot. So, they kind of know what we’re doing and what we’re not doing. So just have to see them on each play and they’re going to make some plays. It’s a really talented group, like I said, so definitely have our work cut out for us.”

As the season’s gone on, have you seen any change at all in QB Brock Purdy in terms of frustration or is he the same even-keeled, even-tempered guy that we’ve seen for three years here?

“Yeah, I would say so. I don’t see him being a guy that changes a lot. Just comes to work and does his thing and he’s been a great help to me. So that’s all I can speak on that.”

Saleh was talking about messaging and how he thinks that head coach Kyle Shanahan does a good job week-to-week of coming up with a strong message. Is that something that the players kind of note? Is that something that you listen for having been with three different organizations now?

“Definitely, yeah. I definitely think he’s one of the best that I’ve been around in terms of team meetings and offensive meetings and then not just the X’s and O’s, but what he’s trying to get across for the week. Definitely taking a lot of notes everywhere I’ve been. I’ve been super impressed with his messaging and he’s a great public speaker, but he also backs it up. So, it’s been a pleasure just to be in there learning from him, from the start, from OTAs all the way through. He’s always trying to come up with something new that can get to the team but that’s because he means it, it’s not just make believe.”

Do you keep those journals, those notes? Do you have them in order and do you ever go back and look at them?

“Yeah, I do. I have a lot of them. I keep them stored away somewhere. I won’t say where, but I have them all stored. And then playbooks too. I have every playbook in any game I’ve played since college freshman year. So, it’s really cool when you can look back even against this team we’re about to play. I’ve played them a few times in Jacksonville and whatnot, so you can always look back and see is there any differences? Is there anything the same? And then also the messaging, like what was the messaging going against a defense like this at a different place. Kyle just does a great job taking it one week at a time. It’s nice now because it’s virtual so you can keep everything on your iPad versus, it’s been a lot of binders for me in the past.”

You won in Houston as a rookie with a fourth quarter comeback. Do you remember that vividly at all?

“Yeah, I do. We got kind of lucky. It was a roughing the quarterback on like a third and 20 to keep the drive alive and then we went down and kicked it. I know they were pissed about that, but it was good to get that under my belt and it was a big win for us. I remember, I think we were like 2-4 or something like that and struggling a little bit and then we ended up winning like seven in a row, whatever. But it’s a long time ago, it seems, and completely different staff and system and everything. But it is nice when you’ve played in a stadium and you kind of know what to expect fan wise and where the play clocks are, all that stuff. So, it’s good to go play there.”

Was it a legit roughing the quarterback call or did you have to sell that?

“I don’t know, you’re going to get me in trouble if I complain about the refs [laughs]. Even five years later, they’ll send me a letter, but no, I don’t know. It wasn’t that bad to be honest. I’ve had worse.”

Do you do that when you’re at a new stadium just kind of go out there and orient yourself to where the play clocks are and things like that?

“Yeah, everyone, that’s kind of one of the things I think a lot of quarterbacks do. I don’t think it’s like rocket science. You just walk out and find them and figure out where they are. But they have a really loud stadium there. I feel like the sound gets trapped well in there and the fans are very passionate. And like I said, their defense is unbelievable. So definitely have our work cut out for us. And at the end of the day, it’s a hundred-yard field and 53 and a third wide, so you know what you’re getting yourself into.”

I assume you’ve met retired legendary quarterbacks. Is there like an instant connection or understanding because you guys both know you have that shared experience because the job of NFL quarterback is so unique?

“Yeah, I know what you’re saying. I respect anybody who’s at the top of their field and for me, whether that’s an athlete or an actor or whatever, like I want to learn, figure out what they’ve done to be successful, to be honest. I’ve been fortunate to not only watch but talk to a lot of really good quarterbacks that have played and every year I’m trying to learn something new and add it to my game or whatever. So yeah, it’s really cool when you’re a kid you’re looking up to those people and then maybe when you’re in the NFL you at least get a chance to talk to them and learn from them. Whether that’s how do you deal with an injury or what about this defensive coordinator? So, it’s pretty cool to just talk ball when you get a chance, usually it’s in the offseason.”