NFL Rumors: San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Colin Kaepernick Not A Good Fit For Denver Broncos

NFL rumors have swirled around Colin Kaepernick in regards to where the dynamic quarterback is going to continue his professional football career next. Things with the San Francisco 49ers went south in a hurry, and Kaepernick has requested that Niners general manager Trent Baalke trade him. According to Fox Sports, the Denver Broncos have emerged as a strong candidate. They might not be the best fit, however.

Just like most quarterbacks in the NFL, Colin Kaepernick has his flaws. He also has his strengths. A smart football mind, such as Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh, can figure out how to emphasize those strengths and minimize the flaws. Kaepernick is a decent pocket passer with a cannon for an arm. His biggest asset is his feet, as Colin is one of the most dangerous running threats in the National Football League.

Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak prefers a more traditional quarterback, one that stays in the pocket and manages the game. Kubiak went through a serious of mediocre quarterbacks when he was the head coach of the Houston Texans. It forced him to become even more of a conservative coach, one that prefers to lean on the running attack and a dominant defense to win games in the NFL.

Peyton Manning is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play in the NFL. Even he was not immune from the conservative nature of Gary Kubiak. There were points in the season where Manning felt uncomfortable because Kubiak tried to make him a different quarterback than what he had grown accustomed to during his years in the league. Peyton was not allowed to freelance like other offensive coordinators, such as former Indianapolis Colts assistant coach Tom Moore, allowed him to do.

One of the issues for Peyton Manning last season was that Gary Kubiak didn’t allow him to operate from the shotgun formation, according to NBC Sports. That’s where Manning is most comfortable because being that far back from the line of scrimmage enabled Peyton to scan the defense and find the soft spots in coverage. Kubiak prefers his quarterback to take snaps directly underneath the center because that made it harder for defenses to figure out which direction run plays were going.

Colin Kaepernick is most comfortable when he is taking snaps out of the Pistol formation, an offensive scheme that he ran with both the Nevada Wolfpack and San Francisco 49ers. If the Denver Broncos acquire Kaepernick, then Gary Kubiak is going to require him to take snaps at the line of scrimmage. Forcing Colin to become strictly a pocket passer isn’t a really good move, as evident by the poor season that he had under Jim Tomsula and Geep Chryst.

When Jim Harbaugh and Greg Roman were running the San Francisco 49ers offense, they implemented quite a few read option plays for Colin Kaepernick, and it helped the former Wolf Pack star become one of the most popular players in the NFL. There were games where Kaepernick was almost impossible to stop. Unless Denver Broncos general manager John Elway insists upon it, there is very little chance that Gary Kubiak would add that particular wrinkle to his playbook.

Gary Kubiak has a smart football mind. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have played for almost a decade in the NFL. He also wouldn’t have a Super Bowl ring as a head coach, something that a lot of great coaches lack from their resume. Realistically, Kubiak should be able to figure out how to best utilize Colin Kaepernick if the Denver Broncos were to trade for him. The thing that might prevent that is if Kubiak is too loyal to his own offensive system.