Colin Kaepernick opts out of contract with 49ers

Quarterback Colin Kaepernick has opted out of his contract, the San Francisco 49ers announced Friday afternoon. The quarterback is now a free agent.

In 2016, Kaepernick restructured the deal the 49ers gave him when they were convinced he was the franchise quarterback. He gave up $14.5 million in injury guarantees for the ability to opt out of his deal at the end of the year.

When the 49ers hired Kyle Shanahan as head coach and John Lynch as general manager, there was some speculation that they would try to keep Kaepernick around. His play last season was far better than the play that saw him benched in favor of Blaine Gabbert in 2015. In 12 games, Kaepernick completed 59.2 percent of his passes for 2,241 yards with 16 touchdowns against just four interceptions.

There was talk of Kaepernick no longer trusting the 49ers as early as 2014, and his divorce from the team has been building for some time. But given his play last season and the chance that the 49ers might keep him around on his previous contract, it’s still somewhat surprising to see him choose now to move on.

There’s the thought that the 49ers will push hard to acquire a new starting quarterback this offseason. They had been linked to Kirk Cousins, but Washington placed the franchise tender on the 28-year-old quarterback. San Francisco could possibly trade for New England Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, but the Patriots aren’t expected trade him.

Plus, the 49ers have the second overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, and if both free agency and the trade market don’t bring a starting quarterback, the 49ers could go with a quarterback early. They could wait until the second round to do so, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they made the pick.

What’s next for Kaepernick is a little less clear. Obviously, Kaepernick wants to continue starting in the NFL, which means his options are limited. Still, at 29 years old and possessing both an incredibly strong arm and rushing ability on par with any other quarterback in the league, it’s hard to imagine him not landing elsewhere. A quarterback-needy team should like his potential enough to sign him, though what kind of contract he ends up with will be very interesting. He’s made a lot of money over the past few seasons, after all.

Last season, the 49ers also had Gabbert and Christian Ponder on the roster, but they will have no quarterbacks under contract once the new league year starts next week.

“We don’t have anybody on our roster,” Shanahan told reporters at the NFL Combine on Wednesday. “Who you guys see on the free agent market, who there is in the draft, and trade possibilities, and our guys who were on our roster last year — that’s really the group we’re picking from.”