He’ll be given a lot of looks.

The San Francisco 49ers fully understood drafting former Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke in Round 7 of the 2025 NFL Draft would be a long-term, low-risk investment. After all, Rourke had suffered a torn ACL during his final year in college (and somehow managed to play through it), meaning his rookie season in the pros was tabbed to be nothing more than a redshirt year.

That year is over now, though, meaning Rourke’s foray into actual on-field work in the NFL can begin.

And he’s certainly someone worth monitoring in workouts between now and the regular season.

The Niners already have their top two spots on the depth chart set; Brock Purdy is the non-questioned No. 1 with Mac Jones backing him up. After that, though, the battle is on between both Rourke and last year’s QB3, Adrian Martinez, who saw roster time in 2025 when Purdy was out eight games with a turf-toe injury.

Usually, third-string quarterbacking battles aren’t much to discuss. But, in San Francisco’s case, it’s of interest for several different reasons.

49ers have vested interest in Kurtis Rourke developing quickly

It’s bluntly obvious Jones won’t be with the 49ers when his current contract expires in 2027, and he’ll capitalize on his success a year ago as proof he resurrected what was otherwise a floundering career up to that point.

So, the Niners need a succession plan in place, and Rourke could easily be that guy after finishing 2024 with 3,042 passing yards, 29 touchdowns and an NCAA-high 9.5 yards per pass attempt.

However, should Rourke’s maturation come along more swiftly, San Francisco could feasibly be comfortable dealing Jones to a quarterback-needy team much earlier than just letting him depart via free agency an offseason from now. True, Jones’ trade market earlier this offseason grew ice cold. But, as we’ve seen in years prior—the 2016 injury to Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater comes to mind, which prompted Minnesota to trade for Sam Bradford—an injury to a starting signal-caller elsewhere in the league could force some desperation.

If Rourke impresses early enough, giving comfort to the 49ers coaching staff that he can adequately back up Purdy, then Jones becomes an even greater trade asset once again.

At worst, of course, Rourke fails to deliver on that front, meaning both he and Martinez are relegated to a lackluster competition for a job few will talk about between now and Week 1.