The 49ers trailed the Seahawks 37-3 early in the fourth quarter. Nothing was going right offensively.
In what would have been the perfect time to get Colin Kaepernick’s feet wet, Chip Kelly decided to leave Blaine Gabbert in the game at quarterback.
The biggest loss from the 49ers wasn’t on the field Sunday, it was what Kelly refused to do. Had Kelly inserted Kaepernick into the game, the 49ers offense could’ve created some momentum behind No. 7 to use next week at home against the Cowboys.
Stop delaying the inevitable, Chip.
The 49ers do not owe Gabbert the luxury of playing time if he can’t run an NFL offense, and in turn, they should bench him before next Sunday’s Week 4 game against the Dallas Cowboys. Gabbert’s not some recent first round pick the team drafted; he’s 26 years old and wouldn’t start for any other team around the league. If Gabbert is incapable of consistently completing passes 10 yards down the field, the time is now to play musical chairs at the quarterback position.
Honestly, what did Kelly have to lose in seeing what Kaepernick could do on offense down 27 points in the fourth quarter? San Francisco’s offense was crawling, and a large part of it had to do with Gabbert’s refusal to throw the football past the first-down marker. He completed 14 of his 25 passes for just 119 yards, no touchdowns and an interception. One of Gabbert’s patented swing passes drilled backup running back Shaun Draughn in the head.
If the 49ers still have a quarterback competition going on — Kelly confirmed such last week at his press conference — then Gabbert is losing the competition every Sunday he steps onto the field. Until we can actually see what Kaepernick can do in a game with Kelly’s offense, you can’t convincingly argue Gabbert gives the 49ers the best chance to win.
Admitting you have a quarterback problem is not the end of the world, Chip. Everyone already knows this. The 49ers shouldn’t be worrying about Gabbert’s psyche if he’s benched. He’s not the long term answer anyway.
And the argument isn’t that Kaepernick has earned playing time by sitting on the bench, it’s that Gabbert has lost his right as the sole signal-caller for the 49ers. If Kelly’s premise to stick with Gabbert is his leadership qualities and study habits, the coach has to understand neither trait is carrying over on the field.
Outspoken Seahawks pass rusher Michael Bennett was asked to evaluate the 49ers’ quarterback situation, and he did with honesty.
“I think (Colin) Kaepernick gives them a better chance of winning but that’s just my opinion,” Bennet said.
Listen, not everything is Gabbert’s fault. The 49ers only hope of achieving an 8-8 record is to play good defense and win the line of scrimmage with Carlos Hyde — both of which didn’t happen until late in the fourth quarter against Seattle.
Kelly owes some us some explanations, too. Play-calling on offense was as vanilla as a preseason game. Gabbert barely attempted a pass of more than 15 yards in the air, often because no receivers were running that far down the field. Kelly inadvertently shrunk the field for this team and the Seahawks pounced.
The bottom line is that it’s unacceptable when your leading receiver, Torrey Smith, has just three catches for 35 yards. Seattle’s secondary or not, somebody has to take a majority of the blame for the passing game’s inability to create plays. Gabbert isn’t elevating anybody’s level of play.
There is a way to try and flip your fortunes on offense. Go flip the backup quarterback switch.
Who knows, Kaepernick might perform worse than Gabbert next week against the Cowboys, or he might be able to put 24 points on the scoreboard. That’s exactly the point: We have no idea how Kaepernick will play, but Gabbert’s been so bad through the first three games, Kaepernick is absolutely worth the risk.
If Kaepernick is a disaster against both the Cowboys and the Cardinals, go back to Gabbert. This isn’t Major League Baseball, you are allowed to bring a quarterback back on the field after he’s been benched.
We get it: Kaepernick barely looked like a professional quarterback last season. But remember, that was with Jim Tomsula and a horrific offensive line. That was 2015.
Chip Kelly doesn’t owe the QB switch to Kaepernick. He owes it to the players in the locker room and the faithful 49er fans across the country. Both parties deserve to see if the offense can move consistently behind Kaepernick instead of Gabbert.
Week 4 is the right time, Chip. Stop delaying the inevitable.
