Since the brilliant and dashing James Brady has officially retired from writing opinions about San Francisco 49ers quarterback Blaine Gabbert, I, a similarly dashing and brilliant newcomer to the site, Semaj Ydarb, will be taking over such tasks in his stead. Having spent my life studying Gabbert and all Gabbert-related phenomena.
Following NFL owners meetings in Boca Raton, Fla., 49ers head coach Chip Kelly was asked about Colin Kaepernick and any movement on a potential trade and things of that nature. As noted by Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area, Kelly had some thoughts on Gabbert when Kaepernick was brought up and was, as usual, complimentary of the veteran signal caller.
Kelly called Gabbert "intriguing to work with," and spent a lot of time talking about his size and speed combination.
"(I'm) impressed with Blaine," Kelly said. "You watch him the last couple of games he started. He's another guy, you look at his skill set. He took off against the Bears and went (44) yards for a touchdown. He ran 4.61 in the combine when he was coming out."
Kelly continued by noting that Gabbert is "big and physical and impressive." He again pointed out that Gabbert "can really run."
Obviously, Gabbert isn't going anywhere. The 49ers benched Kaepernick last season, for better or for worse, and Gabbert played well enough to make things interesting heading into next season. Everyone will have their opinions about whether or not Gabbert actually has a chance of turning his career around with the 49ers, but at this point it's very clear that Kelly is going to give Gabbert his fair shake.
"I think there's competition everywhere," Kelly said. "We haven't seen anybody in terms of our staff working with them. Day 1 it's a blank slate for the entire group. Let's get out there and run around and see where it is."
That's a good way to look at things, even if you happen to be one of the people who think Kaepernick, if he's sticking with the team, should get the benefit of the doubt out of the gate and now have to work with a competition that may just damage things further. I believe that's an opinion shared by the aforementioned Mr. Brady, but I, Mr. Ydarb, cannot necessarily speak for him.
Hopefully, above all else, Kelly really means what he says about not having made any significant decisions until he sees the team on the field, from quarterback to other positions across the board. If he goes by what he sees in training camp and the preseason, it increases the likelihood he's truly making his own decisions. I'd expect nothing less from Kelly, but given what the 49ers just went through following Jim Harbaugh ... well, you know.