Colin Kaepernick May Regret Not Jumping Ship For Denver
By Erik Lambert
The San Francisco 49ers tried to trade Colin Kaepernick but he didn’t let it happen. Now he might pay for it.
Expectations are for the former 2nd round pick who once led the franchise to the Super Bowl in 2012 to get a second chance under new head coach Chip Kelly, a man who features an offensive system that has had its greatest success with mobile quarterbacks. However, there is an undercurrent of belief that the organization is planning to slowly phase him out.
Grant Cohn of Press Democrat raised an interesting point on that subject.
"“But why are the Niners hiding Colin? What does his absence from the pictures mean about his future with the team?I think his absence is symbolic. I think the Niners want him to fade into the background, drop off the edge.I bet the Niners want Colin to lose the quarterback competition. I think the front office is tired of him and his teammates are tired of him, too. I think the Niners want Gabbert to be the starting quarterback and the face of the franchise. That’s why he’s hogging all those photo opportunities.And I think the 49ers want Colin to be the third-stringer. As a third-string quarterback, the Niners could de-activate Colin every game and save the weekly $125,000 roster bonuses they’d have to pay him.”"
Not only were rumors hot last year that GM Trent Baalke preferred Gabbert over Kaepernick due to his better work ethic, but then there is the fact the team drafted another talented young quarterback in Jeff Driskel. Though a 6th round pick, the kid from Louisiana Tech has the physical skill of a top 50 choice and believes Kelly’s offense is the perfect fit for him.
"“As a competitor, you always want to be regarded highly, and you want to be the first one taken,” Driskel said Thursday, per Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area. “And you think you should go before this guy or that guy. But at the end of the end of the day, I’m happy that I landed here. I think it’s a great fit. Can’t wait to get to work with these guys. I think it’s the perfect fit.”"
That might explain why the 49ers drafted him. They believe he offers them the ideal solution for a backup behind Gabbert so they don’t even have to consider playing Kaepernick again. It saves them money and finally takes away one of their bigger media headaches.
Whether that’s the actual truth is hard to say. Chances are the team would deny it, but the utter silence from the Kaepernick camp makes this theory quite deafening. Don’t be surprised if a few months from now the 28-year old will be kicking himself for not taking the opportunity to get out of town and join the Denver Broncos.