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threelittleturds
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Hey guys and gals, I'd just like to get everyone's opinion on how they'd like to see Kaepernick develop into the starting position. Thanks for your participation, and feel free to point out any flaws in my arguments.. and add anything else I left out.
The two main arguments, as I see them
So, with the sink or swim argument. The 49ers seem to be in a pretty good position to give this a try. The supporting-cast's talent level is there this time; with Edwards, Davis, Walker, Crabtree, Morgan, plus Gore out of the backfield as an exceptional safety dump... the 49ers have a lot of opportunities to create mismatches and make life easier for a young QB. Then you factor in Gore's running game, behind what is a talented offensive line (3 1st round picks, and a veteran pro-bowler at center); again, a better situation than the patchwork line that Smith dealt with as a rookie.
The defense isn't quite where you'd want it to be for a sink or swim approach. Ideally you'd like it to be where the Steelers and Jets were at, so they could erase rookie mistakes. So what if Roethlisberger or Sanchez threw an interception, most teams were lucky to get a 1st down after those turnovers. The 49ers on the other hand, their defense seems like a pretty big question mark at this point.
Now, to the slow-development approach. Some of the best QBs in the NFL today are guys who were brought along this way. Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and Aaron Rodgers. We can even add Joe Montana and Brett Favre to this list to enhance the credibility for this style of development. Now, another thing to consider is that all of these guys, with the exception of Aaron Rodgers, were selected in the 2nd-6th rounds. Kaepernick obviously falls into this draft category.
This way is largely beneficial for QBs, because there is so much of the offense that they need to be comfortable with in order to be successful. It's just impossible for most rookies to get to this level in one off-season, more so under this shortened off-season.
My opinion
I would rather see the 49ers take the slow route with Kaepernick. Now, I don't think this guarantees him success. I just think this gives him a better opportunity to reach his ceiling. With our situation of having a 2nd round QB, I also think it is important to note that most, if not all, of the guys who had success with the sink or swim approach were 1st round QBs.
I get the feeling that Harbaugh intends to do the slow-approach with Kaepernick. He tries to model himself after Bill Walsh, and Bill had some darn good success with Montana and Young using this style of QB development. Plus, Harbaugh himself is a 1st round QB who wasn't thrust into the starting position, but brought along behind McMahon and Tomczak.
The two main arguments, as I see them
- Put him out there, let's see if he'll sink or swim
- Let him observe and soak in knowledge, play sparingly
So, with the sink or swim argument. The 49ers seem to be in a pretty good position to give this a try. The supporting-cast's talent level is there this time; with Edwards, Davis, Walker, Crabtree, Morgan, plus Gore out of the backfield as an exceptional safety dump... the 49ers have a lot of opportunities to create mismatches and make life easier for a young QB. Then you factor in Gore's running game, behind what is a talented offensive line (3 1st round picks, and a veteran pro-bowler at center); again, a better situation than the patchwork line that Smith dealt with as a rookie.
The defense isn't quite where you'd want it to be for a sink or swim approach. Ideally you'd like it to be where the Steelers and Jets were at, so they could erase rookie mistakes. So what if Roethlisberger or Sanchez threw an interception, most teams were lucky to get a 1st down after those turnovers. The 49ers on the other hand, their defense seems like a pretty big question mark at this point.
Now, to the slow-development approach. Some of the best QBs in the NFL today are guys who were brought along this way. Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and Aaron Rodgers. We can even add Joe Montana and Brett Favre to this list to enhance the credibility for this style of development. Now, another thing to consider is that all of these guys, with the exception of Aaron Rodgers, were selected in the 2nd-6th rounds. Kaepernick obviously falls into this draft category.
This way is largely beneficial for QBs, because there is so much of the offense that they need to be comfortable with in order to be successful. It's just impossible for most rookies to get to this level in one off-season, more so under this shortened off-season.
My opinion
I would rather see the 49ers take the slow route with Kaepernick. Now, I don't think this guarantees him success. I just think this gives him a better opportunity to reach his ceiling. With our situation of having a 2nd round QB, I also think it is important to note that most, if not all, of the guys who had success with the sink or swim approach were 1st round QBs.
I get the feeling that Harbaugh intends to do the slow-approach with Kaepernick. He tries to model himself after Bill Walsh, and Bill had some darn good success with Montana and Young using this style of QB development. Plus, Harbaugh himself is a 1st round QB who wasn't thrust into the starting position, but brought along behind McMahon and Tomczak.
