We've heard plenty from Trent Baalke and Chip Kelly about San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, and now the other shoe might be dropping soon. NFL Network reporter Rand Getlin is reporting Colin Kaepernick's agents have requested permission from the team to seek a trade.
Kaepernick remains under contract, so another team is not allowed to speak with his agents about a potential trade as it is currently situated. However, teams and agents often will agree to allow the player to seek a trade. That removes the tampering issues that prevent overt trade talks.
Baalke said he expected Kaepernick on the roster April 1, and Chip Kelly was optimistic about Kap in comments earlier on Thursday. However, given the potential for a trade, they would not be bad-mouthing the quarterback or his future with the team. The two sides were set to meet in Indianapolis this week, and Getlin's report would seem to indicate the meeting happened.
Kaepernick's 2016 base salary becomes fully guaranteed on April 1. He is rehabbing from an injury, and is expected to be good to go sometime in April. If another team is interested in him as a starter, his $11.9 million base salary is reasonable. I suspect any trade would happen before then given the upcoming start of free agency, but the April 1 date is not exactly a deadline for it.