San Francisco 49ers beat writer Chris Biderman of Niners Wire went live with us on our Facebook page to discuss a myriad of topics surrounding the team. The chat lasted about 50 minutes and gave fans an opportunity to ask questions to an insider who reports on the team daily. Biderman touched on topics like Trent Baalke's job security, the team's morale during a 1-12 season, possible free agent targets, draft strategy, and much more.
Biderman also said that fans shouldn't assume that assistant general manager Tom Gamble is the natural successor to Baalke, should he be fired. "I don't necessarily know that Tom Gamble wants the job," said Biderman. "He's always been very 'behind the scenes.' He hasn't been public. He doesn't really talk to the media. I think it's kind of a leap to say that Tom Gamble would want the GM job. I think he likes being behind the scenes. He's close with Chip Kelly but he's also close with Trent Baalke.
"We don't really know if Tom Gamble will want the general manager job if Trent is fired. Maybe he follows Trent to Denver. As Matt Maiocco [of CSN Bay Area] reported this week, Trent might go to Denver if he is fired by the 49ers. Maybe Gamble stays Trent's right-hand man and goes to Denver. We don't know for sure.
"I think the 49ers, what they should do, is have a broad extensive search for general manager if and when they fire Trent Baalke – and I'm not sure about Tom Gamble."
Biderman also shared an interesting opinion and "off the wall prediction" (as he described it) about 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. "This is purely speculative," said Biderman. "I'm not sourcing this or anything. I don't have anyone telling me anything like this. I am not certain Colin Kaepernick is going to want to play football after this season. You look at the upcoming free agent class and what Colin Kaepernick is going to be worth on the open market...I don't know that he's going to want to play football anymore. He's taking the GRE. He's thinking about going back to grad school. So I think that's something to keep in mind when we talk about the future of Colin Kaepernick."
One fan wrote that nobody wants Kaepernick and that he is too much of a distraction. "That is a key point because I am not sure there are many executives that disagree with you," Biderman responded. "I think if you look throughout the league, there are going to be a lot of people that question whether or not it's worth bringing in Kaepernick even if he's just a backup."
The full video of the chat is available below or on our Facebook page. You can also visit Niners Wire for the latest 49ers news and opinion by Biderman and his staff.
