Kaepernick’s diminishing returns

This is my Wednesday column. Colin Kaepernick is in the tank. Every week he sinks a little deeper. I picture him diving into a pool like Dustin Hoffman in “The Graduate,” swimming to the deep end, sitting cross-legged on the bottom, covering his ears and screaming inaudible gurgles while Simon and Garfunkel sing “The Sounds of Silence.” Let’s put the plunge in context. Kaepernick is 27 years old and declining….

December 10, 2014
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49ers need Kap insurance

This is my column for Wednesday. The 49ers need a new quarterback. This is not to say the 49ers should give up on Colin Kaepernick — with the right coaching he may still have a future. But they shouldn’t go all in with him, either. The 49ers should hedge their bets, draft a quarterback who could back up Kaepernick as a rookie and could eventually take over as the starter…

January 22, 2014
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Who is Harbaugh’s Joe Montana?

If Alex Smith is Jim Harbaugh’s Steve Deberg, then who is his Joe Montana – Colin Kaepernick or Josh Johnson? I have an opinion, but before I give it I’ll make a case for both guys, as our friendly commenter DS94everXev suggested I do. That way, the Kaeper-nicks and Johnsonites feel I’m being fair. THE CASE FOR KAEPERNICK: The Niners traded up in the second round to draft Kaepernick. Johnson…

March 31, 2012
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Why the Niners should go with Kaepernick

Here’s why I think the Niners should let Alex Smith sign with the Dolphins, and then the Niners could sign Mike Wallace and Josh Johnson instead, and then let Johnson and Colin Kaepernick compete for the starting quarterback job in 2012. Last season, Alex Smith was a game manager who played his best when he was losing in the second half, and whose best attribute was not turning the ball…

March 19, 2012
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Ira Miller on the 49ers – this season and 1981, a conversation

I did an interview with Ira miller, who, as you know, was the 49ers expert in the ’80s and ‘90s. He’s retired now, living in Illinois. What follows is the full transcript of our phone interview. A shorter version ran in the Press Democrat but did not get put on the web. If it gets posted later today, I also will put that on the blog so you can see…

January 7, 2012
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