Since this is a hot topic in the NFL, and it's not going away anytime soon, and a few of us have weighed in through various threads, may as well centralize it.
If you were in the shoes Jim Harbaugh, coach of the San Francisco 49ers, who would you make your starting QB: Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick?
I'd go with Colin. I hand picked him in the draft for this very purpose. So far he's shown control and poise in big games. He is a runnning threat, something Alex never was and more of a deep threat than Alex. The versatility may prove more beneficial than the risk. Colin of course is more likely to throw picks and does not have Alex's experience.
Can they even go back to Smith anymore? What kind of mindset is Smith going to have when it's clear he is not the coaches first choice.
It's truly a bold move by a team that wants to win a Super Bowl. When Kaepernick hits a rough spot, and he will, it will be interesting to see how he handles it. It's a lot to give an inexperienced QB, but lucky for him he has a great defense on his side.
Can they even go back to Smith anymore? What kind of mindset is Smith going to have when it's clear he is not the coaches first choice.
It's truly a bold move by a team that wants to win a Super Bowl. When Kaepernick hits a rough spot, and he will, it will be interesting to see how he handles it. It's a lot to give an inexperienced QB, but lucky for him he has a great defense on his side.
By all accounts, Smith is rolling along with it. The only controversy is in the media, apparently.
It would be one thing if Smith has been as consistently efficient as he was last season, but he's put up quite a few stinkers this season. Harbaugh can take the risk with Kaepernick since the reward from his skill set is higher than with Smith.
As a Niners fan, I'd still go with Alex. Some say that he's a game-manager. So what? He's a good game-manager, and that's enough for this team. Stats of his last two (or 1,5) games:
as a longtime Niner fan i was waiting for the day they would give Kap a shot to Qb this team. Smith is a good manager, but its as if the coaching staff doesnt trust him in certain situations. With Kap at the helm, i see a more vertical offense in the future. that would be really scary with our rushing attack the way it is now. IMHO they wouldnt have to rely on their defense so much with Kap as the starter.
Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for...Trent Dilfer was a game manager who won a Super Bowl...they replace him with Elvis Grbac who was a more capable QB but decidedly not a game manager, and it didn't quite work out so well.
I told my friends that I sternly believe that Smith can win a SB and I still stand by it.
Alex Smith has my support.
The 49ers certainly capable of winning a Super Bowl with Smith as quarterback. I don't think anyone is claiming otherwise. But having a chance to win a Super Bowl doesn't mean that they shouldn't look to improve that chance. I have always supported Alex Smith from Day 1. I was one of about 3 people that believed in him prior to 2011. It's rather ironic that the same cluster of writers and TV heads that couldn't find enough derogatory things to say about Smith, who were questioning Harbaugh about Smith's confidence as recently as Week 7, are now lining up to criticize him about benching his "Pro-Bowl caliber" QB.
Smith has been very good, at times great, this season. That said, I cannot formulate even one argument for the 49ers being a better team with him starting than they are with Kaepernick. If Kaepernick begins to struggle, then we can talk. If that were to happen, Harbaugh would have no hesitation about going back to Smith. Spare me the crap about Smith's psyche and/or confidence being so shaken by this situation that, if asked to, he could not come back and be the effective QB that he has been. Alex Smith is not some emotionally fragile rookie that will crawl into a hole and cry when presented with a little adversity. All these people jabbering about loyalty need to remember that after years of being crapped on by his (ironically) crappy head coaches, Smith is not going to fall apart because Harbaugh, his biggest supporter and most tireless defender for the last 1.5 years, decides to give Kaepernick a chance. He didn't fall apart when the 49ers basically ignored him all summer because they were in the midst of a very serious flirtation with a 4-time NFL MVP quarterback. He won't now. Kaepernick hasn't done anything to make anyone believe that he can't do what Smith can. And he certainly can do everything that Smith cannot. The ability to throw the ball downfield and avoid sacks might be the two most important traits in a QB. Kaepernick has them, Smith does not. There is no reason to go back to Smith until Kaepernick gives them a reason. Smith gave them a reason to switch to Kaepernick, and as unfair a reason as a concussion is, it is still a reason.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GrigsAndGirgs
Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for...Trent Dilfer was a game manager who won a Super Bowl...they replace him with Elvis Grbac who was a more capable QB but decidedly not a game manager, and it didn't quite work out so well.
That is a horrible analogy. The only reason that Dilfer was given a chance was because the Ravens' offense was literally unable to score for about a month with Tony Banks at the helm. Dilfer took over and was utterly Banks-like except for a three-game stretch from Weeks 10-12. Dilfer won a Super Bowl, but don't let that think that it had something to do with him. The "improvement" of the offense had more to do with Jamal Lewis having a brilliant second half of his rookie season than anything else. You could have put that very same Elvis Grbac on the 2000 Ravens, and they would have won the Super Bowl. After the season, the Ravens rightfully and accurately identified that Dilfer was not a realistic option as a starter in the NFL. They recognized that the 2000 defense was probably the greatest defense in NFL history, and they understood that it was unlikely that any defense could duplicate that performance two years in a row. And with anything other than the greatest defense in NFL history to support him, Trent Dilfer was not going to be a legitimate option. They went with Grbac because he at least had the ability to make a serious impact and could put up points. Unfortunately, he did make a serious impact and put up points, but it was just as likely to be for the other team as the Ravens. Still, let's not pretend that bringing back Dilfer would have changed anything about the 2001 Ravens.
Last edited by Blades of Glory: 11-28-2012 at 12:06 AM.
I have no problem with us going back to Smith...but even as a rookie, I think Kaepernick has more of an upside and reward than Smith. Kaep can throw the ball well enough, has the ability to run and he is able to use that to avoid pressure. Of course, theres always the big risk he's gonna go through a rough patch (its inevitable actually) but I think the Niners gain more by putting Kaep in.
I have no problem with us going back to Smith...but even as a rookie, I think Kaepernick has more of an upside and reward than Smith. Kaep can throw the ball well enough, has the ability to run and he is able to use that to avoid pressure. Of course, theres always the big risk he's gonna go through a rough patch (its inevitable actually) but I think the Niners gain more by putting Kaep in.
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