Linebacker Eli Harold isn’t the only 49er who doesn’t like what ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer had to say about quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick doesn’t like it, either.
Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News asked Kaepernick about Dilfer’s remarks following Monday’s 28-0 welcome-back-to-Cali win over the Rams.
“I think that’s one of the most ridiculous comments I’ve heard,” Kaepernick said. “The fact that you say, ‘You’re a backup quarterback, stay in your place,’ that’s an issue. To me, you’re telling me that my position as a backup quarterback and being quiet is more important than peoples’ lives. I would ask him to really have a conversation with the families of people that have been murdered and see if he still feels that way. Because I’d bet you he doesn’t. Just because he hasn’t experienced that type of oppression.”
Kawakami, who believes that Dilfer was at least echoing the views of his friend, G.M. Trent Baalke or, at most, speaking on his behalf, then asked Kaepernick where he thinks Dilfer is coming from with this.
“I’m not sure,” Kaepernick said. “That’s something that I hope he goes home and really thinks about what he said and how it impacts not just me but how it impacts people whose lives are affected by these issues on a daily basis. . . . Nothing’s ever been done without criticism. Every great change, every great . . . whether it’s revolution or evolution of things . . . there’s always criticism of it. And there’s always that, ‘I don’t like change’ kind of mentality. But you have to be able to take that and say you know what in the long run they’ll see what’s going on, they’ll see what’s right, and they’ll understand.”
On Sunday, Dilfer raised eyebrows (and drew an evil eye from Randy Moss) with this: “No matter how passionate you are, no matter how much of a burden you have for a social issue, you don’t let it get in the way of the team. And the big thing that hit me through all of this was this is a backup quarterback whose job is to be quiet and sit in the shadows and get the starter ready to play Week One. Yet, he chose a time when he became the center of attention. And it has disrupted that organization. It has caused friction and torn the fabric of the team.”
The team with its fabric torn tore through the Rams on Monday night, 28-0. Maybe the 49ers would have doubled that or worse, if their fabric hadn’t been torn.
