Golden Gate Tides: The Rise and Fall of Colin Kaepernick

Before he took a knee, before he was benched, and way before he led the San Francisco 49ers on an improbable Super Bowl run in 2013, I had already gotten acquainted with the strong, scrappy quarterback who was Colin Kaepernick.

I first became acquainted with Kaepernick’s play in 2010, when I had the privilege of watching him make mincemeat of Kellen Moore’s Boise State Broncos during an improbable November comeback.

Though I never had an eye for evaluating talent, especially at the age of ten, there was still something about Kaepernick’s game that made me think, “Hey, this guy can play.”

Among the jungle of marginal quarterback play that is college football, Kaepernick stood out. Standing at 6’4 with a live arm and the speed of a wide receiver, Kaepernick was rightfully drafted high by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2011 National Football League (NFL) Draft.

The 49ers had an established quarterback in Alex Smith, but it was obvious that the team needed a breath of fresh air from Smith’s monotonous, uninspiring style of careful play.

With a frightening defense that featured linebackers Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman both in their prime, they needed a more explosive option to lead their offense over the hump; Kaepernick was their man.

However, since his two playoff runs, Kaepernick’s career has taken an unfortunate turn for the worse after his past two seasons, which have been all but disappointing.

No collapse happens overnight. Rather, the seeds for disaster are sown years in advance, and everything bubbles below the surface before coming to fruition. For over a year, there had been a power struggle between head coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Trent Baalke that finally boiled over when Harbaugh was forced out in favor of organization favorite Jim Tomsula. Under the new regime, Kaepernick struggled immediately, posting an ugly four-interception performance during the Week 3 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals.

However, not all the problems were with Tomsula’s incompetent coaching. The death knell to Kaepernick’s dominance came as a result of shifting offensive and defensive schemes. For his three years of success with Harbaugh, Kaepernick had become a master of the read-option running scheme, an offense only previously known at the college level until Kaepernick, Russell Wilson, and Robert Griffin III of the Washington Redskins all made it popular in 2012.

However, 2015 was a different time. It had been three years now, and the read option offense was but a relic, with quarterbacks forced to adapt (like Wilson) or fail (like Griffin). In Kaepernick’s case, he still had the tools to succeed, but the rapid culture shift from Harbaugh to Tomsula likely stunted his growth as a pocket passer.

As a result, he was hung out to dry in what became a disastrous 2015 season, and culminated in a disgraceful benching for Jacksonville Jaguars’ castoff Blaine Gabbert. Kaepernick eventually won the job back, and he actually played soundly in Kelly’s ball control, tempo offense. However, in the end, he left the 2016 season, and the 49ers, with more questions than answers. His play was only adequate at best, and, beyond the questionable play, character concerns had also been piling up ever since Harbaugh’s departure.

After catching fire from teammate NaVorro Bowman for posting a picture of himself in a Miami Dolphins hat online in the offseason after the 2014 season, he seemed to lose the trust of his locker room.

Then, the biggest uproar came before the 2016 season, when Kaepernick decided to make a political statement. In light of recent police brutality, Kaepernick openly professed support for movements like Black Lives Matter, and then he truly stirred up controversy by refusing to stand during the playing of the Star-Spangled Banner before games, a move that many conservative voices saw as disrespectful.

However, the last straw came as Kaepernick seemed to profess support for the late former Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, and actually wore a shirt with his image, a move that many saw as insensitive.

Now, for Kaepernick, the future looks cloudy. Though he opted out of his contract and into free agency, the free agency period is two months in and Kaepernick is still unsigned, leading some to get suspicious. Early in the free agency period, the NFL has seen a number of inferior quarterbacks earn rich contracts, from veterans like Josh McCown to spunky youngsters like Geno Smith. With Kaepernick still on the market despite having the best resume, talk has started that Kaepernick has been “blackballed” by the league, with reasons ranging from his play to his politics and even going as far as race.

In all likelihood, however, that is far from the truth. The fact is that Kaepernick is not the only talented player that stayed on the market for a long time. Adrian Peterson and LeGarrette Blount are both powerful, accomplished running backs with some time ahead of them, with the former ranking among the best in the league before injuries, age, and a suspension derailed his tenure with the Minnesota Vikings.

To say that any of these players have been “blackballed” is ridiculous, since they have both performed adequately of late. The problem is simply lack of demand at the price that Blount, Peterson, and Kaepernick are likely asking at. Kaepernick, Blount, and Peterson have been starters for most of their careers, and have likely been looking for starting positions along with “starter money.”

For Kaepernick, the situation is similar. At 29 years old, and with a more limited skill set than fellow free agent quarterbacks like Tony Romo, Kaepernick is an unfortunate “tweener” when it comes to his role. Though he would win a starting job on numerous teams, including the Rams, Browns, and Jaguars, all three of these teams have younger developmental options at the position.

On the flipside, many other teams have established veteran starters that would relegate Kaepernick to a strict backup role. Having been a starter for his entire career, it is unlikely that Kaepernick is simply willing to resign to a year on the bench quite yet. However, with most starting roles already filled, the chance of Kaepernick getting a starting offer is very slim. So, he waits.

As for Kaepernick’s off-field concerns, while defending a brutal dictator is insensitive, it pales in comparison with the literal rap sheets of other free agents, past and present, ranging from Greg Hardy to Ray McDonald to even the aforementioned Adrian Peterson. All three of these free agents have been signed to a free agent contract at one point or another, despite crimes as severe as child and domestic abuse. So, to call Kaepernick unsignable is unfair.

Even the argument that a backup quarterback cannot be a “distraction” is unfair, as there are numerous controversial backups in the NFL right now. Seattle Seahawks’ backup quarterback Trevone Boykin, for instance, is still on the roster despite multiple offseason arrests and frequent media attention, and is nowhere near the player that Kaepernick is. At the end of the day, this should just be perceived as a financial dispute, as anything more would be hypocritical and irrational by front offices.