Colin Kaepernick to Remain 49ers Starting QB vs. Buccaneers

San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kelly announced Monday that Colin Kaepernick will remain the starting quarterback in Week 7 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Kaepernick went 13-of-29 for 187 yards and a touchdown in San Francisco's Week 6 defeat to the Buffalo Bills. While the sixth-year QB struggled through the air, he ran for 66 yards on eight carries to finish as the 49ers' leading rusher.

Starting Kaepernick isn't an ideal situation for the Niners. The 28-year-old hasn't recreated his success from the 2012 and 2013 seasons, with his 2014 and 2015 campaigns getting progressively worse.

Still, Kaepernick is arguably a better option than Blaine Gabbert. Here's a look at their numbers from this season:

Player	Comp.	Att.	Comp. %	Yards	TD	INT	Rating	Rush Yds	Rush TD
Kaepernick	13	29	44.8	187	1	0	77.8	66	0
Gabbert	87	150	58.0	890	5	6	69.6	172	2

The Mercury News' Tim Kawakami believes Kaepernick deserves more time to prove himself in Kelly's offense:

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Kaepernick is worth examining some more because he actually was good once. Gabbert isn't worth seeing much any more because he never was.

The idea that Kaepernick should be pulled now… is just not logical. At least if the 49ers intend to do this relatively fairly and if they really want to know if Kaepernick can be a quality NFL QB again under Kelly.

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Bleacher Report's Tyler Dunne, on the other hand, was more critical of Kaepernick's long-term viability in the starting role:

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The magic of 2012 and 2013 has all but worn off.

He's athletic. He'll dazzle with his legs occasionally. But once an indomitable force seemingly redefining the quarterback position, Kaepernick resembles a player who was benched for Blaine Gabbert. The Bills were painfully blunt afterward: They forced Kaepernick to be a quarterback and Kaepernick failed.

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San Francisco is effectively out of the playoff discussion after a 1-5 start. In addition, Gabbert and Christian Ponder are the team's other quarterback options. At this point in their respective careers, it's safe to say they aren't NFL-caliber starting quarterbacks.

The same may prove true of Kaepernick, but he made his first start since Nov. 1, 2015, on Sunday. He was also playing for the first time under Kelly and his new offensive scheme.

Kelly doesn't have much to lose by giving Kaepernick more time to build a case as to why he can be the starter in the present and future. If it doesn't work out, then the team can look to the offseason to find the answer to its quarterback woes.