Most of the stuff we hear around the NFL world leading up to the draft is pure smoke in order for teams to create some sort of upper-hand in the media.
Speaking of blowing smoke, the San Francisco 49ers appear to be pretty good at this these days. That’s evidenced by the numerous amount of leaks that have come from the team’s headquarters in Santa Clara over the past year-plus.
Nothing is more evident of this than the organization’s public stance on a quarterback in Colin Kaepernick that has requested his way out of dodge.
In continuing with this theme, a recent report by NFL Media insider Ian Rapoport indicates that San Francisco would have to be “blown away” with an offer to move the embattled signal caller.
This all comes with Kaepernick’s contract situation seemingly coming to a head at some point this week. San Francisco will be on the hook for his $11.9 million base salary for next season should the team not release him by 4:00 p.m. ET on Thursday.
That’s complicated by the fact that Kaepernick himself would have to pass a physical in order to be cut — something that’s not inevitable considering the multiple surgeries he’s gone through over the past several months.
The Cleveland Browns had engaged in trade talks with San Francisco regarding Kaepernick. Though, nothing materialized there. With Robert Griffin III now in the mix in Cleveland, this is pretty much off the table.
And while it does appear that Kaepernick had agreed to a restructured deal if he was traded to the Denver Broncos, John Elway and Co. couldn’t work out a compensation package to send back to San Francisco.
None of this is really late-breaking news. It does, however, tell us a story of an organization in San Francisco that wants to keep the former second-round pick around, at least from what it tells us publicly.
Behind the scenes, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see San Francisco continue to work on potential trades for Kaepernick leading up to the draft.
And once the first day of said draft concludes next month, a desperate team may indeed come calling as a last resort.
If not, any thought of Kaepernick calling a new city home next season can probably be thrown out the window. San Francisco simply isn’t prepared to give him up for pennies on the dollar.