This is not exactly a surprising report, but the wording makes it a little difficult to tell exactly where this leaves things. And Jason Cole's 49ers track record is not exactly stellar the last couple years. For now though, he is reporting neither Colin Kaepernick or the San Francisco 49ers are willing to eat the $4.9 million the Denver Broncos are unwilling to pay as part of Colin Kaepernick's 2016 base salary.
Source: #49ers QB Colin Kaepernick will not take pay cut, nor will team pay off part of deal to make trade happen. No deal with #Broncos.
— Jason Cole (@JasonColeBR) April 4, 2016
For those not inclined to buy into Jason Cole, Ian Rapoport followed up with this tweet:
Colin Kaepernick said no to a pay cut to facilitate a trade to the #Broncos. Conversations have been about how much, if any, SF would pay.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 4, 2016
With @JasonColeBR reporting #49ers won't kick in money to help pay Kaepernick's salary, it amounts to no trade on the horizon. So he showed
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 4, 2016
Somehow this will come to some kind of conclusion. Maybe somehow Colin Kaepernick stays in Santa Clara this season. Maybe a deal gets done. The 49ers clearly have no problem trading him given that they let him meet with John Elway. You don't let a player do that if you actually want him around. If Trent Baalke and/or Jed York say otherwise, they're lying. Of course, I also get that the 49ers want to maintain some kind of leverage in a situation that has turned into a clown-show.
Maybe this will all somehow work out. Maybe it won't. I really have no idea, but I'm highly tempted to take a spur of the moment trip to Las Vegas to move things along.