CHICAGO -- If San Francisco 49ers coach Chip Kelly wants to take quarterback Colin Kaepernick's benching beyond a one-quarter hiatus and try something new this week, it would be understandable after the complete no-show by the passing game Sunday. But if we're going to use that one-game snapshot as a reason to make a change, well, there should be plenty of movement on the depth chart this week.
After the Niners' latest debacle, a 26-6 loss at the hands of a Chicago Bears team that entered the game looking equally dismal to San Francisco, Kelly said there hadn't yet been any discussions or decisions made about who will start at quarterback next week against the New York Jets, let alone over the season's final four games.
"We haven’t had any discussions about it," Kelly said. "It was just my decision to make a move to see if we could get a spark to see where we were. At that point in time in the game we were down a couple scores and obviously we had to throw it to see if we could get a spark for the team. There are no permanent decisions."
Not that the Niners need to make any sweeping declarations about any positions for the final quarter of the season. Given their current state, everybody on the roster should feel like he's playing for his job. For both the short and long-term future, the Niners owe it to themselves to keep Kaepernick at quarterback and continue evaluating what they have.
To be sure, Kaepernick's performance against the Bears on Sunday was abysmal. According to ESPN Stats & Information, he became the first quarterback in league history to take five sacks and throw for less than 5 yards in a game. His 39.6 passer rating was the worst he's put up this season and his 4 passing yards on 1-of-5 attempts was the worst output of his career in a game he started.
While it's easy to get caught up as a prisoner of the moment, it's also important to note that just last week Kaepernick was being praised for the consistent progress he'd made in the previous four weeks. During that stretch, Kaepernick had thrown for more yards (1,110) and touchdowns (eight) than he had during any four-game stretch of his career. He was also on pace to set a career-high in rushing average at more than 8 yards per carry.
All of that reached a crescendo last week in Miami when Kaepernick became the fifth quarterback in NFL history to rush for 100 or more yards and throw for three or more touchdowns in a game.
When Kaepernick spoke to the media last week, he said he was feeling more comfortable in Kelly's offense every week and Kelly said he could see Kaepernick progressing from one week to the next.
For the first time since he became starter before the Week 6 game against the Buffalo Bills, Kaepernick took a decided step in the wrong direction on Sunday.
"This is a setback most definitely but we have to continue to keep pushing forward," Kaepernick said.
When Niners quarterbacks coach Ryan Day told Kaepernick that Gabbert would be replacing him in the fourth quarter, Kaepernick said he didn't feel the need to argue or put up a fight. He wanted to be a good teammate to Gabbert as Gabbert had been when he lost the job after the first five weeks.
"It’s not my place to really argue on the sidelines," Kaepernick said. "I want to make sure I do what I can to help this team win and that was the decision that was made so I’m going to support my teammates."
While the weather shouldn't be used as an excuse, especially given the fact that Chicago quarterback Matt Barkley had a solid 97.5 passer rating, it's also the new factor that was apparent in this game that wasn't present for any of Kaepernick's previous starts. Kelly said he didn't like the way the ball was coming out of Kaepernick's hands on the few pass attempts he had and cited that was one of the reasons that he turned to Gabbert.
It's unlikely the 49ers will face similar conditions next week at home against the Jets. They then close out the season with trips to play the Atlanta Falcons in the Georgia Dome and sunny southern California to play the Los Angeles Rams before wrapping up the season back home against the Seattle Seahawks.
Despite a Sunday morning NFL Network report that he's already decided to opt out of his contract after the season and explore free agency, Kaepernick continued to say he isn't thinking about anything beyond next week's game. That doesn't mean the Niners aren't, though.
Gabbert has already proved he isn't the answer long-term and never flashed the ability that Kaepernick has recently or earlier in his career. Christian Ponder has been inactive all season and almost certainly isn't either.
Kaepernick is the only one of the three to offer some semblance of hope that he can resurrect his career and he can be a productive starter again. While that's uncertain and the final four games of the season probably won't provide a definitive answer either, the Niners would be wise to use all of those opportunities to decide just where Kaepernick fits in 2017 and beyond regardless of his contract status.