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Kaepernick says he's "clocked out" on Russo. "I don't feel like you have any right to say you have any say in how things go," Kaepernick says. "Because you weren't the one working those night shifts, you weren't the one driving me an hour and a half, two hours on the weekends to go work with a quarterback coach for an hour or two, and driving me back. My mom has gone above and beyond for so long, and I don't feel she gets the credit she deserves for what she's done."
Big-Play Day
Kaepernick's breakout half-season did not have a fairy-tale ending, and the Super Bowl loss has left a raw wound. The 49ers had the ball on the Baltimore 7-yd. line, first and goal, trailing 34-29 with 2:39 left. Seven stinking yards, four chances, and they're almost certainly champions. Kaepernick audibly sighs before talking about the game. "It's replayed in my mind a million times," he says. "The last four plays of that game--it's something I don't think anyone on our team will ever just have that go away. I think all of us are, 'What could we have done different?'"
What hasn't been lost is that Kaepernick is leading a quarterback revolution against the NFL's rigid plays. The pistol sets he runs with San Francisco turn the quarterback into a multitasking weapon, running the offense on the fly. "It had a big role in the NFL last year," Kaepernick says. "And it's kind of been a trend that's been coming up more and more." The basic concept is simple: It's essentially a formation in which the quarterback stands a few yards behind the center, awaiting the snap. The running back stands directly behind him. In the traditional shotgun, the running back stands to one side. So if there's a handoff, say, to the right, the ball carrier is likely running right.
But in the pistol, the defense can't see the running back hiding behind the QB. So on a handoff, the D must guess the running back's direction. Kaepernick can also fake a handoff, hold on to the ball and then either throw downfield or run it himself, a strategy known as the read option. The style is unorthodox, unpredictable and, with a player of Kaepernick's ability behind center, a football fun house.
The NFL has its issues--see trauma, head, and behavior, criminal--but fans are living in a golden age of quarterbacking. Greats like Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers are atop their games. Wilson and RG3 also use the read option, and both rookies led their teams to the playoffs. (Washington's big wishes: congressional cooperation and RG3's recovery from knee surgery, not necessarily in that order.) The Colts' Luck, who was the top pick of last year's draft, had fans asking, "Peyton who?" And don't forget another dual-threat QB, Cam Newton, who may have suffered a little sophomore slump early last season but set a rookie record for passing yards two years ago--before Luck broke it last season. "I think it's a little bit of a new era of quarterbacks," says Kaepernick, the voice of a generation. "A lot of quarterbacks are talented with their arms and legs. They're not only pocket passers. They're athletic. Defenses have to be honest. There's a lot of big plays to be made." Nothing freaky about that.