Colin Kaepernik has had a rise and fall career. He was drafted in the second round in the 2011 draft. He was the 6th quarterback taken out of the twelve quarterbacks drafted. In 2012 Kaepernick took over Alex Smith after he had a concussion and played very well passing for 1,814 yards and 10 touchdowns while rushing for 415 yards and 5 touchdowns. As the quarterback Kaepernick led the 49ers to the playoffs including the Super Bowl which he eventually lost. Jim Harbuagh thought Kaepernick played so well he decided to trade Alex Smith to the Kansas City Chiefs which signaled that Kaepernick was going to be the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers for the 2013 season. In all 16 games he started and played that season he passed for 3,197 yards and 21 touchdowns while rushing for 4 touchdowns. He once again led the 49ers but lost in the NFC championship to the eventual Super Bowl Champions Seattle Seahawks.
On June 4, Kaepernick signed a six-year contract extension with the 49ers, worth up to $126 million, including $54 million in potential guarantees, and $13 million fully guaranteed. 2014 was the first year that Kaepernick had missed the playoffs as a starting quarterback. He passed for 3,369 yards with 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions and rushed for 639 yards and one touchdown. This was also the last year with head coach Jim Harbaugh.
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Kaepernick seemed to have a great career but soon he became a different quarterback. In 2015 he was benched in favor of Blaine Gabbert and never got back in the rhythm to be a starting quarterback.
Kaepernick is a talented player but one instance changed his career. Before a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers on August 26, 2016, Kaepernick refused to stand during the playing of the national anthem. During a post-game interview he was asked why he sat down and stated, "I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder."
This caused a controversy and many NFL players voiced their displeasure of Kaepernick. Victor Cruz stated, “You got to respect the flag and you got to stand up with your teammates its bigger than just you.” Alex Boone say “You have to show some respect, especially in this position that we’re in, where we’re playing a game for a living you know, it’s almost disrespectful. You see all these pictures of these veterans that have no legs and they’re standing up in their wheelchair.”
Kaepernick may be standing up for a cause he believes in but this is a huge matter. People die every day to fight for this country and the least you can do is stand up for our national anthem. This country has been through so much in the past and this just adds to the long list of everything that has happened to America.
