Anybody of note in or connected to the NFL who speaks to the media is getting questions about free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick as training camp approaches. The latest is San Francisco 49ers Hall of Famer Joe Montana. The legend has chimed in on Kaepernick over the years, which is not surprising given the 49ers connection.
This week, he briefly chatted with the Sporting News about the free agent QB. Montana hit on a lot of the usual points. He talked about how an injury could get him an opportunity, but then he went to the talking point of distractions in the locker room. Oh, and he made a Tim Tebow comparison.
"I’m not sure, I think there’s an injury somewhere he probably gets in," Montana said. "In most cases, you look at Tim Tebow — a great guy and everybody was talking about him. But what it comes down to is 40 percent completion or even in the low 50s, you can’t win in the league with that. You won’t be in the league very long. It comes down to his play as much as anything.
"Everyone thinks it is the stance he took; one of the things you don’t look for is distractions in the locker room. You can go back to Bill Walsh and as soon as there were guys that weren’t fitting in what he was looking for, it didn’t matter how good you were. You weren’t on the team for very long. You have to have people who want the same thing, fighting for the same thing and willing to put in the time."
So, yea. Montana seemed to hit on several talking points in trying to assess Kaepernick’s situation. I disagree with the Tebow comparison that has popped up on occasion. I get the point Montana was trying to make, but it seemed like he was off base in the comparison.
There will be numerous injuries in the preseason, and the quarterback position will see its fair share. It’s going to be fascinating to see which quarterbacks get the first call in August as players get hurt. I’m skeptical Colin Kaepernick will be getting calls, but maybe the NFL proves me wrong.