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Chip Kelly lofts praise Colin Kaepernick’s way

The San Francisco 49ers may be mired in a franchise-worst 10-game losing streak. If it weren’t for the equally hapless Cleveland Browns, all the talk in Northern California would be about the team acquiring the No. 1 pick in the 2017 NFL Draft to select a quarterback of the future.

Interestingly enough, and despite the team’s lack of overall success, any idea given to a quarterback of the future may rest on what Colin Kaepernick does over the final six games of the season.

Coming off his second 400-yard performance in four games, an argument could be made that Kaepernick is playing his best football since the 2012 season.

In throwing praise his quarterback’s way, head coach Chip Kelly seems to be of this thought process as well.

“He’s just got more experience,” Kelly said, via The Sacramento Bee . “He’s made a progression from game-to-game … which is what you’re looking for. I think that part of it is positive. It’s not just one facet where it’s just this, and this is all he’s done. It’s in everything — his pocket presence, his accuracy, understanding and knowledge of protections, in all that stuff I think he’s improved since the Buffalo game.”

Indeed, Kaepernick has improved since replacing an ineffective Blaine Gabbert under center back in Week 6. That initial start of the season saw the much-maligned quarterback complete just 13-of-29 passes for 187 yards in a 45-16 loss. Though, the 66 yards Kaepernick put up on the ground was definitely a sign of things to come.

We already knew Kaepernick had the ability to make plays with his feet. The 393 rushing yards he’s put up over the past six games is a prime example of this.

What has come as a surprise is just how much Kaepernick has improved as a passer in his first season under Kelly. He’s averaing 248 passing yards per game and has put up 10 passing touchdowns compared to just three interceptions. Compare that to the six touchdowns he put up in eight starts last season, and there’s a marked improvement here.

All said, the numbers are simply tremendous for the embattled quarterback thus far this season.

Whether this means Kaepernick has an opportunity to once again be viewed as the 49ers’ quarterback of the future remains to be seen. There’s just too many factors involved in this for us to draw a concrete conclusion.

First off, San Francisco still has six games remaining in the regular season. A lot of what Kaepernick does between now and January will play a huge role heading into the offseason.

Scecondly, Kaepernick restructured his contract earlier in the year. This enabled the 49ers to get out from under the guaranteed money they owed him under his previous deal. It also allows Kaepernick to opt out of his deal. Should he continue to play at this high level, there will likely be a lot of interest in his services.

Despite the well-known rift between Kaepernick and San Francisco’s front office as well as his national anthem protest, it sure looks like the Super Bowl quarterback has turned the corner in his career. The praise Kelly threw his way on Monday is yet another example of this.

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