The quarterback competition is and will continue to be one of the leading stories of the San Francisco 49ers' offseason. Both Blaine Gabbert and Colin Kaepernick have been participating in this week's three day mandatory minicamp, which came to a close on Thursday. However, Gabbert has been able to participate in all aspects of practices while Kaepernick has been limited to individual and 7-on-7 drills – sitting out 11-on-11 work.
Kaepernick is expected to fully take part in training camp, which takes place in late-July. Prior to this week, Kaepernick was mostly limited to throwing the football with trainers on the side of the practice field. While on the practice field, he simply mimicked the motions of the quarterbacks during practice and did not actually participate as he was not yet medically cleared to do so.
RELATED Transcript: Chip Kelly talks Colin Kaepernick, Jeff Driskel, QB reps for training camp
49ers head coach Chip Kelly was asked if those mental reps were helpful for Kaepernick's transition back to practicing. "That's a question for him. But, I believe he's really stayed on top of those things," said Kelly. "He was very quick in the decision-making process. There may have been some timing issues and that was expected just because he hadn't thrown. But, he was better on day two than he was on day one. But, I think that it's a credit to him in terms of what he did when he wasn't out there going full speed from a physical standpoint, he was from a mental standpoint and that's benefitted him. It's a credit to him. I was impressed."
Colin Kaepernick and Blaine Gabbert throwing side-by-side. #49ers pic.twitter.com/XbHICU0SO1
— Joe Fann (@Joe_Fann) June 9, 2016
When asked how reps would be managed should Kaepernick be ready to go by training camp, as he is expected to be, Kelly responded, "We have enough reps. We get enough reps during the course of training camp and during the course of our training where it's never been a concern for us in terms of, 'Geez, we're not going to get enough looks out there.' So, we have enough reps for everybody."
Kelly went on to say that everyone would get reps with the first team offense during training camp. That will likely include rookie QB Jeff Driskel as well.
Is Kaepernick fully healthy now? "No. He's still coming back from, I mean, that's a better question for him in terms of where he is from a percentage standpoint. But, the goal is to make sure he's full-go when we get back here at the beginning of August," responded Kelly.
This afternoon, Kaepernick will speak to the media for the first time since the end of the 2015 season, so we will learn more then.
