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49ers 5 Biggest Disappointments So Far in the Preseason

By Robert Smith

Aug 20, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kellyl against the Denver Broncos during the third quarter at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The 49ers beat the Broncos 31-24. Mandatory Credit: Troy Babbitt-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 20, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kellyl against the Denver Broncos during the third quarter at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The 49ers beat the Broncos 31-24. Mandatory Credit: Troy Babbitt-USA TODAY Sports /
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Aug 20, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Blaine Gabbert (2) calls out over guard Zane Beadles (68) and tackle Joe Staley (74) at the line of scrimmage in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 20, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Blaine Gabbert (2) calls out over guard Zane Beadles (68) and tackle Joe Staley (74) at the line of scrimmage in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Blaine Gabbert-Quarterback

Coming into this preseason, there was much hype about the quarterback competition between Blaine Gabbert and Colin Kaepernick.

Many felt Gabbert showed enough poise and accuracy last year that his transition into this offense, where coach Chip Kelly desires that his quarterback be accurate and make quick decisions, would be fairly seamless.

And while it hasn’t been a complete disaster, Gabbert hasn’t really distinguished himself enough to evoke a ton of confidence that he will flourish in this system come the regular season.

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Through three games in the preseason, he has put up fairly pedestrian numbers — 12-of-22  for just 146 yards, one touchdown with no interceptions is fair. But considering he has thrown quite a few checkdown and short routes, his completion percentage should be higher.

And had Kaepernick not played so poorly in his first preseason game, Gabbert might be looking at a real quarterback competition.

But because Kaepernick missed so much time rehabbing from his injuries, it seems pretty clear Gabbert isn’t really involved in a true quarterback competition.

Now to be fair, the third preseason game saw him throw just five times. So it’s not as though he has seen extensive time on the field.

That said, he has certainly has not wowed anyone.

Prediction: It’s clear that Gabbert will be under center when the 49ers open up the season against the Rams. The only question now is will Christian Ponder over take Kaepernick to be the backup. Once Kap familiarizes himself and gets acclimated to the new system, he will be the backup to Gabbert in 2016.

Oh how the mighty has fallen.

Next: 1. 49er Wide Receivers