For some reason as the NFL trade deadline draws nearer, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Mac Jones continues being lumped into trade rumors.
One recent bit of speculation saw the 49ers deal Jones to the Minnesota Vikings and then signing Jimmy Garoppolo (?!) to replace him. A new piece of speculation comes from the Athletic's Ted Nguyen who put together a handful of deals that could swing the Super Bowl race. He also sends Jones to the Vikings in exchange for third and fifth-round picks. Here's his explanation of the trade, which he calls 'a stretch,' via the Athletic:
This one is a stretch, but bear with me. Despite Kyler Murray being close to a breakthrough — he’s still in the early stages of Kevin O’Connell’s offense — what if he has another
unproductive game in Week 8 and the Vikings brass gets nervous? Murray is on a one-year deal, and they didn’t invest much to get him. Jones is another former first-round pick who already has a year of Shanahan rehabbing under his belt and has shown he could play at a relatively high level in the right environment.
It's much easier to envision a Jones-Vikings union in the offseason when Jones hits free agency if Minnesota is interested in trying to replicate the Shanahan-to-Minnesota pipeline that bore so much fruit with the Sam Darnold signing.
It's far more difficult to envision a scenario where the 49ers are willing to trade a quarterback, who could help them win games if Brock Purdy misses any time, to an NFC rival who is currently a game up on them in the race for the No. 1 seed in the conference.
San Francisco had opportunities to trade Jones this offseason. They had a chance to trade him to Minnesota. They determined in the offseason the prices teams were willing to pay for Jones weren't enough to get them to part ways with a quality backup. The notion that they'd suddenly be willing to do so at the trade deadline for a team they're in direct competition with and facing one week after the trade deadline seems far-fetched.
If the 49ers are trading Jones anytime before the deadline it would likely require a Godfather offer that includes at least one first-round pick. If that trade comes with Minnesota it would likely require additional capital on top of a premium draft pick.
A world where Jones plays for the Vikings isn't probably far off. A world where the 49ers deal the QB for a couple of mid-round picks is.
More 49ers: 49ers trade target dealt to NFC contender for 2 first-round picks
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: NFL trade deadline: 49ers unlikely to deal popular trade target
