Can Chip Kelly revive Colin Kaepernick's dormant career? Hall of Fame wideout Jerry Rice believes the new 49ers coach will do exactly that.
"I think with Chip Kelly, it brought life to Colin Kaepernick," Rice told the Golf Channel this week, per CSN Bay Area. "You look at Chip Kelly and what he was trying to implement in Philadelphia -- with (Mark) Sanchez, (Nick) Foles, and (Sam) Bradford -- those guys were more like pocket passers.
"Now you got that read-option with Colin Kaepernick, a guy that can get outside the pocket and a guy that can extend plays, and he's also gonna be a threat to run," Rice said. "It could be a good marriage for them."
Chalk it up as a new message from Rice, who called for Kaepernick to be benched in October, saying: "I am a true Kaepernick fan. 100 percent. I'm not saying bench him for the season, but sometimes you gotta shake things up. It could energize the team, and provide Colin the spark he needs."
The hope in San Francisco is that Kelly will light that spark, using Kaepernick as the mobile signal-caller he's lacked since coaching Mike Vick. With NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport noting that Kelly was already "trying to figure out how to trade for" Kaepernick at his next NFL stop, it's safe to say the young quarterback will have a fair shot at winning the job.
The 49ers have other options, though, with the athletic Blaine Gabbert on the roster and the No. 7 overall pick in this year's draft. That wouldn't be too high to draft a quarterback if Kelly wants to turn this position around after studying last year's ho-hum tape under center.
