It looks as though the NFL rumor mill got a little ahead of itself on a potential Colin Kaepernick trade.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Saturday that the San Francisco 49ers had agreed in principle to trade the quarterback to the Denver Broncos, but ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio reported that’s not entirely true. A source told Florio on Sunday that talk of a deal being close was overstated because “someone wanted it out there.”
The original report stated the Broncos and Kaepernick were trying to work out a way to reduce the signal-caller’s $11.9 million base salary, which became guaranteed Friday, and that was the only roadblock holding the deal back. But while a trade might not be that close to happening, the two sides at least are talking: Kaepernick met with Broncos general manager John Elway on Thursday, according to The San Francisco Chronicle’s Eric Branch.
Schefter added an update to his original story Saturday, reporting via a source that the two sides are $4.9 million apart in negotiations. The Broncos are willing to pay $7 million of Kaepernick’s salary while the Niners want Denver to pay the full $11.9 million, per Schefter’s source.
The defending Super Bowl champions are in the market for a quarterback after Peyton Manning retired and Brock Osweiler took a four-year, $72 million deal with the Houston Texans. Denver’s only option at QB right now are Mark Sanchez and backup Trevor Siemian.
Thumbnail photo via Ed Szczepanski/USA TODAY Sports Images
