SANTA CLARA, Calif. _ Colin Kaepernick will remain the starting quarterback this week as the 49ers begin preparations to host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
"Colin will be our quarterback against Tampa Bay," 49ers coach Chip Kelly said Monday at his weekly press conference. "I think there's some things he did Sunday that he can build upon. For his first extended playing time since last year I think there's some real positives to continue to try to build with."
Kaepernick completed 13 of 29 passes for 187 yards and added 66 yards on eight carries, with most of the yardage coming on pass plays where he escaped trouble. Kelly wasn't expected to go back to Blaine Gabbert at the starter, but after a 45-16 loss to Buffalo on Sunday answered "we'll see" to the question of whether Kaepernick would start again.
"Sometimes his protection broke down and he kept plays alive," Kelly said. "(He) did a good job keeping the ball out of harm's way. Didn't throw any interceptions. ... Gave (us) some opportunity there in the run game, so going forward we're going forward (we'll) try and build on what he did this past week."
Kelly said that Gabbert would remain the backup quarterback with Christian Ponder at No. 3.
"I think he's done a really nice job on our scout team," Kelly said. "The difficulty is just the amount of snaps you have overall. Christian gets sprinkled in there a little bit but there are not enough reps to go around overall to get three ready to play."
Kaepernick's strength and conditioning, which was an issue when Gabbert was named the starter, is no longer something Kelly is concerned about. Although there was no target weight for Kaepernick to achieve, Kelly said he is 220 pounds.
"One thing about Colin everybody admires is his work ethic," Kelly said. "He's worked extremely hard at getting stronger, getting faster. I see a different Colin out there now than I did seven weeks ago when we were in camp trying to make a decision from a quarterback standpoint."
The 49ers have lost five straight games after a win in the regular-season opener. Tampa Bay, coming off a bye, is 2-3.
