If/when Colin Kaepernick is eventually traded away to the Denver Broncos, the 49ers quarterback situation will be the major issue to address in San Francisco, especially for new head coach Chip Kelly.
Kelly, who runs more of a read-option offense, will need a quarterback that fits his system. Since coming into the NFL back in 2013, Kelly has had Michael Vick, Nick Foles, Mark Sanchez, and Sam Bradford as his starting QBs.
All have had success under his offense and most QBs that play under Kelly, should succeed as well. But Kelly has a particular preference when it comes to the type of signal caller he wants, as evidence by him trading away Foles for Bradford.
Foles, who in his first season under Kelly, and playing in 13 games, fired 27 touchdown passes to just a pair of interceptions. The next season, without Desean Jackson, Foles regressed, big time. But it also became clear, that Foles wasn’t exactly the QB type that Kelly prefers, so he traded away for Bradford, who ran a similar offense at Oklahoma, has a quick release, and is accurate in short and intermediate routes.
And for the most part, it paid off. Despite the rough growing pains and missing two games, Bradford set a career high in yards passing, posted the 2nd best QB rating of his career, and was on pace to break his career high in TD passes.
Bradford was exactly what Chip Kelly wanted, and he got it, until he was fired.
Now in San Francisco, he enters with Blaine Gabbert, who succeeded in the same offense that Colin Kaepernick struggled so mightily in. However, the old adage still stands, new head coach, new system, new quarterback.
With Kaepernick seemingly out of the picture, Kelly will need to find a new QB that fits his system, and that passer seems to be in the NFL Draft in the form of Cal’s Jared Goff, who played in a very similar system at school.
He is also accurate in short and intermediate routes and has a quick release- put it simply, he fits exactly what Chip Kelly wants in his QB, small hands or not.
Most of the mock drafts coming out have Goff to the 49ers with the 7th pick, and with Kaepernick possibly on the way out, it makes this all the more probable.
The 49ers brought in Chip Kelly knowing the offense he runs and knowing he likes/needs a QB who fits his system, and if Kaepernick doesn’t want to be that guy because of his rift with management (who can blame him), then Chip has to find his guy in the draft, and we believe that’s Jared Goff, a California native who played college ball in his home state and grew up a 49ers fan.
