Mac Jones Steals the Show at Tight End University, Sparks Wave of Fan Jokes About 49ers QB
Mac Jones showed up to Tight End University and somehow stole the headlines from actual tight ends.
The 49ers backup quarterback made an appearance at the sixth annual edition of TEU, the offseason training event founded by George Kittle, Travis Kelce, and Greg Olsen back in 2021. Brock Purdy was there too as the primary thrower. Jones, as backup quarterbacks go, looked like he was enjoying himself a little too much.
The viral moment came from a clip posted by Dana Beers. Jones was casually flipping deep balls downfield while moving to the music playing in the background. He looked relaxed. He looked confident. He looked like a guy who was not getting hit by an NFL defense at the time, which is a vibe Mac Jones has always carried well.
Fans had a field day on social media. The jokes ran the spectrum, from people clowning him for grooving during drills to others pointing out that this is the most engaged Jones has looked at a football event since his rookie year in New England.
The cameo was supposed to be a footnote. Kittle is the host, Kelce is the cofounder, and the headline names this year were tight ends like Trey McBride, Sam LaPorta, and Brock Bowers. Jones being there at all was a courtesy to Kittle and Purdy. The two 49ers quarterbacks served as throwers during the on-field drills, which is the standard ask for QBs at the event.
But the Jones clip got more traction than anything else from the weekend. Part of that is the Mac Jones effect. He is a polarizing player, written off by half the league after his Patriots tenure went sideways, and somehow always at the center of a moment that has nothing to do with his actual play.
The 49ers signed Jones last offseason to be insurance behind Purdy. He is exactly the right kind of backup, in the sense that he can run the system, manage a game, and not make franchise-killing mistakes if Purdy goes down for two or three weeks. He is also the kind of backup who shows up at Tight End University and dances through reps, which is either charming or annoying depending on which jersey you wear.
The bigger story underneath the jokes is the TEU event itself. What started as a small offseason gathering has become one of the most influential NFL events of the summer. The networking, the film work, the chemistry-building between quarterbacks and tight ends across rosters, all of it matters more than the social media clips suggest.
Purdy taking the work seriously is the meaningful note from a 49ers perspective. He used the weekend to throw to Kittle and the rest of the league’s top tight ends, which keeps his timing sharp and gives him reps against new looks. That is what TEU is supposed to be for.
Jones, in the meantime, gave the internet content for a week. The 49ers will take it. So will the TEU organizers, who got more reach off the Mac Jones clips than any official event promo this year.
Football is back in conversation. The quarterbacks are throwing again. And Mac Jones, somehow, is still the main character.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
