The San Francisco 49ers had some big news over the weekend when they placed quarterback Colin Kaepernick on injured reserve. Kaepernick reportedly suffered a torn labrum on his non-throwing shoulder, and will get surgery this week. The recovery time is believed to be approximately 4-6 months, and the move ends his 2015 season.
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Once Kaepernick was benched, it seemed pretty obvious he was going to be released or traded in the offseason before his salary becomes fully guaranteed on April 1. The injury raises some questions about potential issues surrounding the April 1 deadline. Kaepernick needs to be able to pass a physical by April 1 if the 49ers trade or release him.
Assuming he can pass a physical, or assuming the 49ers are willing to eat his 2016 salary if it becomes guaranteed, there will be plenty of potential suitors, either via trade or in free agency. Ian Rapoport reported at least three teams approached the 49ers about Kaepernick prior to the trade deadline, something general manager Trent Baalke denied. This morning, Peter King published his latest Monday Morning Quarterback, and he had a look at four potential landing spots for Kaepernick.
King prefaced his list by saying "I talked to a few league people over the weekend about possible landing spots for Kaepernick, and the ones that seem to make the most sense, in order:" He listed them as follows (with my thoughts below each block quotation:
1. Philadelphia. If Chip Kelly is, as expected, still the coach, he'll need a quarterback with his QB depth chart a disastrous minefield right now.
It makes sense, but how much pull will Chip Kelly have over personnel decisions? He lost Tom Gamble in a power struggle, and his offseason of moves have not really panned out that well. There is a part of me that just thinks people think, well, Kaepernick's "athletic", Chip ran an "athletic" type of offense at Oregon, so obviously it makes sense. Maybe that connection is wrong to some extent.
2. The Jets. Because they're in need of a quarterback of the future, and offensive coordinator Chan Gailey likes versatile athlete types.
This one makes a lot of sense, with neither Ryan Fitzpatrick and Geno Smith looking like any kind of long-term option. This team has a lot of talent on the offensive side of the ball. One reason this might not happen is if they decide to go with more conservative option at quarterback.
3. Baltimore. Because of the Harbaugh connection—and now, because there's no guarantee Joe Flacco will come back from his torn ACL and MCL suffered Sunday, considering that the third preseason game for the 2016 season comes exactly nine months from this week.
This is a new addition following Sunday's tough news about Joe Flacco. Carson Palmer suffered a torn ACL a year ago in early November and made it back for the start of the 2015 season. However, this is a torn ACL and MCL, and two weeks later than Palmer's injury. I could very well see Flacco open the season on the PUP list. The big problem for Baltimore is Flacco's cap figures are ballooning at what is now the worst possible time.
4. Oakland. But as a backup only, obviously, and that would only be if no team wouldn't be interested in Kaepernick as a starter or to compete for a starting job. Why the Raiders? Because not long before Al Davis died, he hosted Kaerpernick for a pre-draft visit, and the Raiders likely would have picked Kaepernick if the 49ers didn't trade ahead of them to pick him during the 2011 draft. "Al was upset," Hue Jackson, the coach at the time, told me a couple of years ago. "So was I. Scouting him, I fell in love with the kid." I hear some in the building still like Kaepernick and think he can be saved, but again, Derek Carr's their guy, and the only way this works is if there are no starting prospects elsewhere."
This one makes the least sense. Neither Jackson or Al are part of the franchise anymore. Mark Davis is Al's son, but Reggie McKenzie is the guy in charge of personnel. Furthermore, while it makes sense to give Derek Carr competition, I just don't know that it makes sense to provide somebody still relatively young, and a potential starter in the NFL. In Kaepernick's shoes, I don't know that the Raiders provide the best opportunity back to being a starter. Given that Derek Carr is showing a lot of good signs, they might be the worst option.
What do you think? Do any of these make more sense than the others? Do you see other options? And will it be a trade, or will a release happen?