During his lengthy broadcasting career, Joe Theismann has been criticized for overpraising the Washington Redskins
But when it comes to the San Francisco 49ers, the former Super Bowl winning quarterback did not tread lightly Monday morning on KNBR 1050’s The Audible.
“Chip Kelly’s philosophy of football does not work at the professional level,” Theismann said. “And we’ve seen it historically with college coaches that have tried to come and coach at this level. For whatever reason it is, whether it’s personnel choices, whether it’s concepts, it just doesn’t work. There’s no other way to get around it. The records bare out the comments that are being made.”
Theismann’s characterization of Colin Kaepernick might be worse than Kelly’s. The quarterback is completing just 44.8 percent of his passes and threw the tide turning interception Sunday in the second quarter.
“And by the way, Colin Kaepernick can’t play,” Theismann said. “Colin Kaepernick is the west coast answer to Geno Smith. Okay? Blaine, maybe it’s not the most perfect situation for you, but it’s better than what Kap is. And this has nothing to do with off the field, this has to do with the way he plays football. He’s been in a downward spiral for the last three years. Except you made such an economic commitment, you’ve got a lot of money sitting on the bench.”
For everyone chastising the 49ers, the locker room has remained a tight-knit unit. There really is no finger-pointing going on. The coaching staff is putting in the hard work, sometimes even sleeping at the team facility. But to the former Redskins QB, this is much more about the players.
“Where does it start? I think it starts in the locker room,” Theismann said. “Do you love football, or are just playing for them money? Unless you have people who want to prove the best that they can be, you can’t win.
“San Francisco was so great for so long. Now all of a sudden, they’ve fallen on really hard times. I feel for the people of San Francisco. I feel for the 49ers fans.”
