San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick took care of some injury issues on Wednesday, undergoing surgery on his right thumb and left knee. He had ligament damage in his thumb, and had some loose stuff in his knee that required arthroscopic surgery.
Matt Barrows is reporting Kap will need to wear a cast on his right hand (see picture below) for 6-8 weeks, and the knee injury has a much shorter recovery period. This all follows surgery on his left shoulder for a torn labrum that will require rehab up to around April.
I say around April because we know that his 2016 base salary becomes fully guaranteed on April 1. He would need to pass a physical by then, but it remains to be seen just where he will be at that point. And whether it is 49ers doctors or independent doctors is also at least a little bit interesting.
As Kap continues his rehab process, Tim Kawakami brought up some very interesting points in connection with the coach search. Until recently, the 49ers seemed likely to trade or release Kap. Then they fired Jim Tomsula. It remains to be seen what is left of Kap's relationship with the front office, but the 49ers will seemingly need to answer some of those questions in their interviews with head coach candidates. The interview is certainly about getting a better handle on the coach, but any coach will have plenty of questions about the direction of the San Francisco 49ers. And the status of Colin Kaepernick is high on the list of likely questions.
Congrats on the successful surgeries @Kaepernick7! Looking forward to a strong 2016! pic.twitter.com/aVDMlSYNt1
— XAM Sports (@XAMSports) January 7, 2016