ChrisPozz wrote:ChrisPozz wrote:SOURCES: PONDER HAS SUPPORT IN LOCKER ROOM
http://www.csnbayarea.com/49ers/sources-ponder-has-support-locker-room/I'm sure he's had support from the get go but if this is the start of something more than lukewarm team support, it sort of feels like the same kind of situation they found themselves in with Blaine Gabbert last year when players began to rally around him. Similar work ethics, similar personalities, similar leadership traits, etc.. At least to me.
A couple more thoughts.
This brings almost the exact same ceiling that Gabbert gave you, too. IMO. One of the only extra things this does for you if you're the coach or an assistant coach is it gives in to any player calls that you're willing to try something different and not keep ramming your head into the same brick walls.
Unfortunately, it's like I keep saying over and over. If you play Gabbert, the negatives will be like having an awful pain in your arm. If you play Kaepernick, the negatives will be like having an awful pain in your side. If you turn to Ponder for some reason, the negatives will be like having an awful pain in your eye.
It just depends on your pain preference and if you're ready for a different kind of pain for a while.
I can't begin to have an accurate picture of the majority of the positives or negatives each guy gives you but if it's Kaepernick's time again, the most concerning part about all of that other than the injury stuff is his inability almost since day one to take a group of guys and be the ultimate unifying personality and constant of a group despite what your shortcomings are on the field. This is where Gabbert and maybe to a slightly larger extent, Ponder kind of makes up for their shortcomings.
I'm not one of those guys that thinks Kaepernick doesn't work hard. I think at least until he got hurt he always worked hard (plenty of instances of that). I just don't know how smart he works. The types of things he does in close concert with the things he lacks as a passer. That's always been one of my biggest concerns wanting to put up with him over a long term time period, especially since all this garbage happened.
If that's always going to be there with him, and at this point I think it's safe to say he's not changing or just plain can't anymore, I'd rather not even try lining up everything else around him just to see if he can be passable even in a Kelly scheme. On the other hand, if the demand by the players is so high that you have to try something different or else you start to lose your key guys, you may have to take on the different pain for a while and hopefully reset everything at the end of the year (where there may only be one long term hope available AT MOST IMO). If I didn't think so highly of Kelly I probably wouldn't worry about the coach losing anybody but right now, until the FO structure is better, Kelly is about as good of a coach as this structure and owner is going to get IMO.
I think it comes down to Kelly has to try to do something different so he can show the team like you said that he's trying something different and doing what he can to get the offense going.
The other part in this is I feel he has to at least see for himself that Kap can't be salvaged and the guy from 2012 is long gone. We as fans will say a guy is done but offensive coaches always have that mentality of "Maybe if I get MY hands on him I can bring out that talent again". It's pretty much exactly what Hue Jackson did with RGIII in that he had to see for himself if he could fix him or not.
The fan part of me that wants to win wants to see Kap in there because not that I believe it's realistic that Kap turns things around but at least wants to roll the dice on the unknown than keep rolling out there with Gabbert who is confirmed to be bad.
The fan part of me that is looking for the best interest of the long term health of the team wants to lose out and get the #1 or #2 pick where you're either going to get Kizer or Garrett and fill one of two major needs on the team.