The San Francisco 49ers added some depth behind the quarterback battle between Colin Kaepernick and Blaine Gabbert Tuesday, as they signed Christian Ponder.
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Gabbert, selected two spots in front of Ponder in the 2011 draft, drew mixed reviews from new Niners coach Chip Kelly after going 4 for 10 for 63 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s preseason opener against the Houston Texans. He passed for 6,658 yards and 38 touchdowns along with 36 interceptions.
He’s the highest-profile whiff of Rick Spielman’s career with the Vikings.
The quarterback situation in San Francisco is a mess with Colin Kaepernick dealing with a “dead arm” and Thad Lewis lost for the season.
Kelly told the media after the game that with the way things are going it is still an open competition for the starting job for either Gabbert or Kaepernick. Despite a poor performance from Blaine Gabbert on Sunday, he now remains the heavy favorite to open the season as the 49ers starting quarterback.
“I’m just really disappointed for him because I thought he played well yesterday and was really starting to come on”, Kelly said.
The No. 12 overall pick in the 2011 draft, Ponder last appeared in a regular season game in 2014, with the Minnesota Vikings. “He later signed with the Denver Broncos on November 25, 2015, where he was inactive for two games for Denver and later released on December 8, 2015”. Kaepernick, meanwhile, hasn’t thrown a practice pass since Wednesday due to a tired throwing shoulder.
O’Brien said he wasn’t concerned by quarterback Brock Osweiler’s performance, though he completed just four of seven passes for 27 yards.
Kaepernick said the tightness is a result of his return from three surgeries that limited his participation in the 49ers’ offseason program.
“It’s a sad day for all of us when you lose one of your players”, Day said. “Made a lot of throws, especially coming back from three surgeries, so want to make sure that we’re staying ahead of things”. For 2016, Kaepernick will make $11.9 million fully guaranteed, an obligation the team couldn’t have avoided by cutting him before the payment vested on April 1 because Kaepernick was injured. In January, he had two more on his left knee and throwing hand. He was cut by the Raiders on September 5 after participating in their offseason program and training camp.
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“My arm’s always snapped back quick, so not too concerned about it, ” Kaepernick said.
