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Colin Kaepernick is heading into his third NFL season, but he really only has half a season under his belt in the pros. After taking over the offense following Alex Smith‘s concussion mid-way through the 2012 season, Kaepernick didn’t look back, and led the San Francisco 49ers all the way to the Super Bowl. So how will he follow it up in 2013?
Many people like myself are viewing his third season as a year with sophomore slump potential. You can’t help but wonder if part of the reason he was so successful, was because nobody had a game plan to stop him. Things are going to be more difficult heading forward for the young QB – but is he just so talented that it doesn’t matter?
There’s a good argument to be made that Kaepernick is just too fast and strong to have a sophomore slump. The guy is an athletic freak, and the smart money is that we’ve just seen the beginnings of what he’s capable of. Still, there’s more than likely going to be a few forgettable games to come this season.
I expect Kaepernick to experience some normal growing pains in 2013, but there’s no way he has the proverbial slump. I’m not sold on him being an all-pro quarterback yet, but again, he’s only half a season into his career. There’s just a lot we don’t know about him at this point.
As he heads into training camp, he’ll have to adjust to his new role as one of the team’s leaders. He was still the backup at this point last year, so camp will be a new experience. But he’s shown us no reason to doubt that he’ll excel in his new role heading forward.
With Kaepernick, it’s now going to be all about experience. Once he goes through those normal ups and downs, he’ll be much better off. The talent and physical abilities are already there, and now it’s a matter of him honing his craft.
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