49ers Will Start Colin Kaepernick Against The Saints

49ers S Donte Whitner confirmed that Colin Kaepernick will get the start against the Saints this weekend while appearing on the Dan Patrick Show, via Pro Football Talk.

There have been numerous reports in last few days that have been reporting as much, so this news isn’t all that surprising. The question now becomes whether or not Alex Smith is now the 49ers backup or is this just a decision that was impacted by his recent concussion? Considering that the 49ers have been very high on Kaepernick, this seems like an audition for him to takeover the job for the long-run.

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Jim Trotter reports that the 49ers will in fact start Colin Kaepernick this weekend against the Saints.

Trotter adds that the decision to start Kaepernick had nothing to do with Alex Smith’s concussion and instead was based on performance.

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49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh mentioned that he expects QB Alex Smith to be cleared before the end of the week.

“It looks like he will be (cleared) before the week is out,” said Harbaugh while appearing on the Murph & Mac show, via the Sacramento Bee. “But not as of now. I’m sure he will be.”

“It’s the opposite of a controversy,” Harbaugh said in regards to a potential quarterback controversy. “We’ve got two good guys.”

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49ers quarterback Alex Smith still hasn’t been cleared following the concussion he suffered over a week ago, per Matt Barrows of the Sporting News.

“I’m kind of in the middle of it,” said Smith.

With the 49ers playing on a shorter week this week, Smith will have one less day to pass his concussion tests. All signs right now appear to be pointing to Colin Kaepernick starting once again for the 49ers against the Saints on Sunday.

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Colin Kaepernick made a heck of an impression in his first NFL start against a very solid defense. Following the game, head coach Jim Harbaugh told reporters that he hasn’t completely ruled out giving Kaepernick another start, nor is ready to bench Alex Smith.

“I usually tend to go with the guy who has the hot hand,” Harbaugh said, per ESPN.com’s Mike Sando. “We really have two guys who have a pretty hot hand, but we’ll make that decision as we go forward.”

Smith only missed this game because he suffered a concussion back in Week 10, but it’s pretty clear that Kaepernick brings a different dynamic to the team’s offense. Kaepernick is extremely athletic and has a much better arm. He should plenty of poise last night against a team that many believe has at least a top-two defense.

You can expect to hear more regarding the Kaepernick and 49ers quarterback position in the days to come.