Right place at right time, but Kaepernick might be the best qb of the 2011 class.

Newton - Can be as good as he wants to be, but celebrity may be more important.
Gabbert - Put in a poor situation and is out rest of the year.
Locker - Accuracy? Watched him at Washington and is ok but not elite imo.
Ponder - College QB, played the game of his life against the 49ers. How many of those does he have? Short.
Dalton - Solid QB

Expectations for Kaep are through the roof. This organization is in that glorified realm inhabited by Bill Walsh and Eddie D where anything but a Super Bowl is unacceptable. All the above quarterbacks, except for Dalton and Ponder, have no shot to see the playoffs. With less than 3 games of tape I'd say the majority of fans would take Kaep over the above group.

Originally posted by natrone06:

Originally posted by H41L5ATAN:
I still suspect the 49ers were hoping Andy Dalton would fall to them in the 2nd round. Hindsight... so glad that wasn't the case! CK7 has a ceiling out of sight!

]

Originally posted by KegBert:
I heard reports, after the draft, that we wanted Dalton and when Cinci took him we freaked and moved up for Kaep.

I'm right there with you though, completely stoked we got CK. I honestly thought he was the second best QB in the draft, after Newton and before Dalton.

Supposedly everyone in the from office including Balke wanted Dalton while Jim was banging the table for Kaep.

All speculation, we will never truly know...

but i'm excited about Kaep though! I think physically, Kaep is more gifted than Dalton. However, lets wait on the mental aspect of the game.

I agree, he's the steal of the draft to get him in the 2nd rd.

C'mon guys. 2 starts and you already think he's the best? Stop being like 95% of ESPN Analysts that make premature assumptions. I know were all Niner fans here and we want the best for Kaep, but lets be realistic: He's two starts into his career. You cannot make a judgemental comparison with a QB with two starts to another QB with over 25 (Dalton, Cam). I remember the first time Ryan Fitzpatrick played in his first NFL game and threw for over 300 yards and 3 TDs. Did he turn into some great QB? I'll let the mass answer that.

With that said, as of 11/29/12, the rankings for the 2011 QB class should be as follows:

1. Andy Dalton: As a rookie, he took his team to the playoffs. He is having another terrific outing this year too. In his last three games, he has 9 TDs, 0 INTs, 1 RuTD and his team is 3-0 and back above .500. He's poised in the pocket, great accuracy and a terrific arm on both short and deep routes.

2. Cam Newton: Had a record-breaking rookie season, but production has slipped off this year. Questionable decision making and is a run-first QB. Comparisons to VY ARE ACCURATE. Jury is still out, but if they add help on the O-line and a playmaker or two on offense, we'll see how he continutes to grow.

3. Colin Kaepernick: Two games in and he has shown great poise in the pocket and has a rocket arm. Has great speed as a runner and knows when to use it (unlike Vick, VY, Cam) He also has the best all-around team of all the QBs in this class, which will likely bode well in his development. Teams will gather more tape on his play and learn how to defend him. As long as the 49ers stay committed to the ground game like they have all year, it will make his play all the more lethal.

4. Christian Ponder: Lack of offensive talent at WR (aside from Harvin) and TE have stunted his development. That being said, I don't think he'll develop into a great QB, but he is certainly better than Dirty Sanchez. He has some upside and potential to be Alex Smith-like for the Vikings (Cue the ignorant, immature, and unnecessary comment regarding upside, potential and Alex Smith. As to state Alex Smith-like isn't/shouldn't be considered potential or upside)

5. Jake Locker: Accuracy issues from college rarely change in the NFL. Despite a Shoddy defense, they have playmakers on offense. He just isn't getting them the ball consistently.

6. Lame Gabbert: Has shown no improvement from year 1 to year 2. Team is pathetic, and doesn't have mental toughness. He will be the one AND ONLY bust of this draft class.

Andy Dalton is Alex Smith 2.0

Originally posted by blizzuntz:
Andy Dalton is Alex Smith 2.0

Andy Dalton is the white Alex Smith

Cam Newton is the best. Kaeps sample size is too small. Locker looks really really good but hes always injured. Time will tell

Originally posted by KegBert:
I heard reports, after the draft, that we wanted Dalton and when Cinci took him we freaked and moved up for Kaep.

I'm right there with you though, completely stoked we got CK. I honestly thought he was the second best QB in the draft, after Newton and before Dalton.

According to league sources, the 49ers also thoroughly investigated trading back into the bottom of the first round, with an eye on Andy Dalton, who went to the Bengals at 35. They spoke to the Patriots and Bills about jumping ahead of Cincy in the second round, before ultimately leaping Washington to make sure they landed Kaepernick.

http://www.nfl.com/draft/story/09000d5d81fae47e/article/general-managers-weigh-in-with-which-team-had-best-draft

Who cares? As long as he plays well for the team, he does not need to be the best of the class.

Kaepernick maybe the best in his class but Alex Smith is awesome.

Originally posted by Jcool:

Originally posted by KegBert:
I heard reports, after the draft, that we wanted Dalton and when Cinci took him we freaked and moved up for Kaep.

I'm right there with you though, completely stoked we got CK. I honestly thought he was the second best QB in the draft, after Newton and before Dalton.

According to league sources, the 49ers also thoroughly investigated trading back into the bottom of the first round, with an eye on Andy Dalton, who went to the Bengals at 35. They spoke to the Patriots and Bills about jumping ahead of Cincy in the second round, before ultimately leaping Washington to make sure they landed Kaepernick.

http://www.nfl.com/draft/story/09000d5d81fae47e/article/general-managers-weigh-in-with-which-team-had-best-draft

That's just speculation though. I don't doubt that they explored getting back into the bottom of the first, but "league sources" is still speculating on whom the Niners would have been targeting. I wouldn't be all that surprised if it was true that Dalton was the first choice (nor would I be that Kaep was the #1 all along), but an article on NFL.com doesn't make it any less speculatory.

This whole draft class is starting to look pretty darn DOPE.

Originally posted by natrone06:

Originally posted by H41L5ATAN:
I still suspect the 49ers were hoping Andy Dalton would fall to them in the 2nd round. Hindsight... so glad that wasn't the case! CK7 has a ceiling out of sight!

]

Originally posted by KegBert:
I heard reports, after the draft, that we wanted Dalton and when Cinci took him we freaked and moved up for Kaep.

I'm right there with you though, completely stoked we got CK. I honestly thought he was the second best QB in the draft, after Newton and before Dalton.

Supposedly everyone in the from office including Balke wanted Dalton while Jim was banging the table for Kaep.

The niners traded up before the Bengals picked, and when they took Dalton, the war room stream showed everyone celebrating about it. That sorta says who they wanted, and it wasn't Ricki Stanzi.

Originally posted by KowboyKiller:

The niners traded up before the Bengals picked, and when they took Dalton, the war room stream showed everyone celebrating about it. That sorta says who they wanted, and it wasn't Ricki Stanzi.

I saw that too. It was kap all the way!

Originally posted by KowboyKiller:

The niners traded up before the Bengals picked, and when they took Dalton, the war room stream showed everyone celebrating about it. That sorta says who they wanted, and it wasn't Ricki Stanzi.

lol. i wanted Stanzi back then.