Jim Harbaugh Is Ironically Benching Alex Smith on Thanksgiving After Once Defending Him Against ‘Jive-Turkey Gobblers’

by Jen Slothower on Thu, Nov 22, 2012 at 2:42PM

For 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, letting Alex Smith sit another week and giving the San Francisco starting job to youngster Colin Kaepernick was probably just good football sense.

But considering Harbaugh made the decision on the eve of Thanksgiving, the situation has become more interesting.

Smith, after all, is the quarterback that Harbaugh defended earlier this season against those whom he called “jive-turkey gobblers.”

Harbaugh was rather oblique about what a jive-turkey gobbler exactly was, but we’d assume it has something to do with the national holiday wherein the bird is carved. That makes it that much stranger that Smith has lost his job leading the 49ers flock right around the holiday.

Anyway, for those of you hoping for some real news, Harbaugh is going with Kaepernick, and Smith is being a pretty good sport about it.