Brent Jones


Brent Michael Jones is a former American football tight end who played almost his entire National Football League career with the San Francisco 49ers from 1987 to 1997. He was selected in the fifth round of the 1986 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Jones won three Super Bowl rings with the 49ers and was three times named All-Pro and is a four-time Pro Bowler. He finished his 11 NFL seasons with 417 receptions for 5,195 yards and 33 touchdowns.
Shortly after his playing career ended, Jones became an analyst for The NFL Today. Jones worked for the NFL on CBS from 1998 to 2005. Jones decided to leave CBS Sports during the 2005 NFL season in order to focus on his business in California, Northgate Capital, which he founded with former teammates Mark Harris and Tommy Vardell. Jones is a former member of the board of directors for San Jose Sports & Entertainment Enterprises, which owns the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League.

Early life

Jones attended Young Life as a sophomore in high school. Jones attended Leland High School in San Jose, California, where he played baseball as a catcher and football as a wide receiver. In baseball, he was a First Team All-League selection.

College career

Jones played for Santa Clara University in the Western Football Conference.

Professional career

Jones was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fifth round with the 135th pick of the 1986 NFL Draft. Five days after being drafted, Jones got into a car accident, causing injury to his neck. The Steelers kept him on the roster until about a month into the regular season, leaving him unsigned until the following season when he joined the 49ers as a backup during training camp. Jones emerged as a starter in the 1989 season, following the retirement of John Frank.

Regular season

Playoffs

Business career

In 2000, upon retiring from football, Jones and former teammates Steve Young, Tommy Vardell, and Mark Harris co-founded Northgate Capital, a venture capital and private equity investment firm with approximately $4.9 billion of assets under management and offices in San Francisco, Danville, Mexico City, and London and served as its Managing Director and Founding Partner. He sold a majority stake in Northgate to Indian financial services company Religare Enterprises in 2010 and continued to manage the firm as a Partner. In 2016, after Religare and Northgate's management team sold 100% ownership of the firm to The Capital Partnership, an investment advisor with offices in London and Dubai, he transitioned to the role of Founder and Senior Advisor.

Possible political aspirations

Jones is a Republican. Over the last several years he has been rumored as a potential political candidate. At one time, he was considered by many pundits to be a potential candidate for the US Congressional seat held by freshman Rep. Jerry McNerney in northern California's 11th District. On March 19, 2009, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that Jones was being recruited to run in a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Ellen Tauscher, who was appointed to a position in the State Department, in 10th Congressional District of California. On March 4, 2010, David Harmer, a Republican candidate running for the 11th Congressional District of California, announced that Jones had endorsed Harmer's campaign.

Coaching career

Jones's coaching career began at Monte Vista High School in 2007. Competing in the East Bay Athletic League, he coached Zach Ertz.

Personal life

Jones is a Christian. Jones is married to his wife Dana, and has two daughters, Rachel and Courtney, who both played division 1 college soccer. Rachel played for the Cal Poly Mustangs and Courtney played at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, helping the Tar Heels win two NCAA Championships. Courtney is a retired professional soccer forward and defender. She played for the Boston Breakers in the NWSL.