The San Francisco 49ers made the quarterback switch official on Wednesday. Head coach Jim Tomsula met with the media and announced that Blaine Gabbert will get the start over Colin Kaepernick this week against the Atlanta Falcons. Tomsula said the decision was for this week, and would not go into details about what it means beyond this week. Tomsula said he watched tape and talked with the offensive coaches, and then let the front office know what his decision was. Make of that what you will.
This news is close to 48 hours old at this point, but it is good to actually hear the decision. Tomsula said he wants Kaepernick to step back and breathe, and "view things through a different lens." Tomsula was asked what Blaine Gabbert would bring to the table this week. He hit on some cliches, talking about preparation and hard work, but did not provide much in the way of detail.
Matt Barrows asked Tomsula about whether this was a "hot-hand" type of situation. Tomsula would not go into any detail on that, so who knows where the 49ers quarterback situation is going. The 49ers face the Falcons on Sunday, and then hit their bye week. That gives them an extra week to prepare for the Seattle Seahawks in Week 11.
I'd imagine Gabbert remains the starter past the bye week, but I suppose a train wreck performance on Sunday could change that decision. Until we see what Gabbert does on Sunday, I'll stick with the belief that Kaepernick does not get back onto the field with the 49ers this season.