Colin Kaepernick reportedly won't be healthy in time for 49ers minicamp
QB is not only tasked with learning a new offense; he also has to win a starting job
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Blaine Gabbert's advantage in the 49ers' quarterback competition isn't ending anytime soon, because his foe, Colin Kaepernick, will reportedly be unable to take the field during minicamp.
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Kaepernick won't be healthy in time for minicamp this week. Rapoport added in his report that the hope is for Kaepernick -- who is recovering from surgeries on his shoulder, thumb, and knee -- to return in time for training camp in late July.
Still, even if Kaepernick is available for training camp, he'll be at a considerable disadvantage. For one, both Kaepernick and Gabbert are being asked to learn a new offense run by Chip Kelly. Due to Kaepernick's inability to actually practice in that new system, Gabbert is getting a sizable head start.
Two, if Kaepernick doesn't play until late July, it'll be essentially nine months since Kaepernick threw a meaningful pass. The last time Kaepernick saw the field was November. And, let's remember (though I doubt anyone's forgotten), Kaepernick didn't play all too well the last time we saw him on the field.
In nine games, Kaepernick completed 59 percent of his passes for 1,615 yards, six touchdowns, and five interceptions for a career-low 78.5 passer rating. That lowly stat line isn't entirely on Kaepernick and his alleged decline isn't as dramatic as many have made it out to be -- as I wrote about here -- but does anyone really have confidence in Kaepernick to win a quarterback competition, in a new offensive system, nine months after he last saw the field, which came during the worst season of his career?
The good news for Kaepernick: his competition is Gabbert. Like Kaepernick, Gabbert wasn't good in 2015 (86.2 passer rating). Unlike Kaepernick, Gabbert has never been good since entering the league in 2011.
Really, that's the only thing Kaepernick's got going for him at this point. Well, that and the fact that his new boss is Kelly, a coach who once coaxed Nick Foles into a 27-touchdown, two-interception season, which proves just about anything is possible.
