Report: 49ers Open To Keeping QB Colin Kaepernick At The Right Price

Jason Cole of B/R spoke to a source who mentioned that 49ers new HC Kyle Shanahan and GM John Lynch are open to keeping QB Colin Kaepernick on their roster. However, Cole’s source qualified this by adding that it won’t be at his current price tag of $16.9 million for the 2017 season.

Cole mentions that there are still concerns about Kaepernick’s decision making and accuracy are likely to be big issues for Shanahan should they bring him back at a lower salary.

Last week, Lynch said he and Shanahan plan to meet with Kaepernick later this month to discuss his future with the team.

“The first order of business is Kyle and I both really attacking [the roster] and seeing what we have here and we’ll do that with his situation,” Lynch said, via Zac Jackson of ProFootballTalk. “We’ll sit down with him and if we see fit that he’s a part of it, we’ll commit to that. If not, we’ll figure things out.”

Lynch went on to say that Kaepernick recently reached out to him and that the team would meet with him after sorting out their personnel plans.

Shanahan admitted that he still needs to watch film on Kaepernick to evaluate him.

“Colin, just like any other player, is someone I’m going to be watching a lot of tape on over these next few weeks,” Shanahan said. “Before we can look into anything — free agency, draft, anything — you have to know what the players on your team are. That doesn’t happen from just turning on a game. That happens from watching a lot of stuff. It takes a lot of time. It is a process. I am a little bit behind right now, but I have the time to do it and I’m looking forward to it and can’t wait to get started on it.”

Kevin Lynch of SFGate.com, citing a source close to Kaepernick, reported a week ago that he has yet to determine whether he’ll opt out of his contract this offseason, which came in direct contract to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who previously mentioned that Kaepernick will be opting out of his deal this offseason.

It is worth mentioning that Kaepernick can’t officially opt out of his contract until March 2.

Kaepernick, 29, is a former second-round pick of the 49ers back in 2010. He was in the third year of his seven-year, $126.97 million contract that included $61 million guaranteed when reached an agreement with the 49ers on a restructured deal.

Kaepernick’s new contract will give him the ability to void his deal in the coming months and test the open market.

In 2016, Kaepernick has completed 59.2 percent of his passes for 2,241 yards and 16 touchdowns and four interceptions, while adding 468 yards rushing. Pro Football Focus has him rated as the No. 27 quarterback out of 36 qualifying players.

We’ll have more regarding Kaepernick and where he’ll be playing in 2017 as the news is available.