Latest On Colin Kaepernick

After the 49ers’ decision to place Colin Kaepernick on IR with a torn labrum in his left shoulder ignited NFL Twitter on Saturday, here is the latest on the San Francisco signal-caller.

  • Kaepernick looks to have sustained this left shoulder injury as far back as Week 4 against the Packers. Colin’s brother, Kyle Kaepernick, tweeted that the former 49ers starter played “4.5 games with it,” as relayed by CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora. Kaepernick’s 6.6 yards per pass attempt is the lowest of his career, and the fifth-year passer threw for fewer than 170 yards in five of his eight starts.
  • Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk corroborates Kyle Kaepernick’s tweet about the timeline of this injury, noting the 49ers quarterback suffered the ailment in Week 4 but also the fact the team didn’t disclose it since his health improved sufficiently. Once Colin Kaepernick complained of soreness following San Francisco’s Week 10 bye, the 49ers discussed actions with his representatives, leading to the IR designation. Florio expects the team to trade or release him before April 1, when the $11.9MM base salary becomes guaranteed.
  • Recovery time for the surgery Kaepernick is slated to undergo this week hovers around six months, Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group reports, which could affect his future with the 49ers. Kaepernick’s contract is guaranteed against injury but contains no more fully guaranteed money.
  • Also in Inman’s report: Kaepernick believed he sustained this lingering malady on a collision with Clay Matthews. Upon being told the injury would progress further during the bye week, Kaepernick reported to the 49ers the shoulder was “throbbing,” prompting an MRI and this latest turn of events. The torn labrum diagnosis emerged from a second opinion Thursday.
  • This IR stay will cost the former second-round pick $875K, which comes from $125K per game from being on the 49ers’ 46-man game-day roster, Joel Corry of CBSSports.com tweets.
  • Corry also posits that Kaepernick’s uniquely crafted contract worth $114MM over six years signed in June 2014 actually will have paid him $23.975MM in new money if the 49ers move on from him before April 1 (Twitter link).
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