Thursday, July 11, 2013

Are The 49ers Really Better With Colin Kaepernick?


Colin Kaepernick was given the keys to the 49ers offense by Jim Harbaugh after incumbent QB Alex Smith went down with a concussion in week 9.  Let me rephrase that, Kaepernick was given the opportunity with the injury to Smith, and in the eyes of Harbaugh and many 49ers observers he won the job.

Despite what our eyes are telling us, is the offense really all that much better with Kaepernick at the helm?  Let's take a look at the numbers.


  • Both Kapernick and Smith attempted 218 passes during the 2012 regular season.
  • Kaepernick had a completion percentage of 62.4%,  70.2% for Smith.
  • Kapernick completed less than 60% of his passes in 3 of 7 starts, while Smith completed less than 60% of his passes in 1 of 9 starts.
  • Kaepernick averaged 8.3 yards per attempt.  Smith averaged 8.0 yards per attempt.
  • 4.6% of Kaepernick's attempts went for TD's, 6.0% of Smith's attempts went for TD's.
  • Kaepernick was sacked 16 times, while Smith was sacked 24 times.
  • Kaepernick converted on 32.3% of 3rd down attempts, Smith converted on 37.9%.
  • 1.3% of Kaepernick's passes were intercepted, 2.2% of Smith's passes were intercepted.
  • Kaepernick ran the ball 63 times for 415 yards, 3 TD's.  Smith ran the ball 31 times for 132 yards, 1 TD.
  • The 49ers averaged 23.7 points per game with Kaepernick, 23.7 points per game with Smith.
  • The 49ers lost 2 games with Kaepernick, and 2 games with Smith.  
To take this even a little deeper, below is a link from ESPN comparing the 49ers offense per drive with Smith and Kaepernick.  A big thank you to Spaceborn for passing this along.


Again I ask, are the 49ers really better with Colin Kaepernick?

1 comment:

  1. No, because Alex checked into running plays on occasion, which allowed them to extend drives and keep the defense fresh. The offense with CK on the other hand was more inclined to pass the ball, which sometimes resulted in 3-and-outs, leaving the defense on the field a longer period of time.

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