49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick stoked the flames of his team’s rivalry with the Seahawks on Thursday with some pointed comments about Richard Sherman’s actions at the end of the NFC Championship Game, but that wasn’t the only topic on the board as he made the media rounds.
Kaepernick was also asked about the possibility of a contract extension as he enters the final year of the deal he signed after being drafted in the second round of the 2011 draft. Kaepernick said that he wants to be paid on a level commensurate with his place in the league, but understands that any money that goes to him can’t go to other players that will help the 49ers beat the Seahawks and other teams in the future.
“I think it’s a balance. You want to be paid fairly for what you feel like you’re doing in comparison to your peers,” Kaepernick said on KNBR, via Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee. “But at the same time, you have to realize, if we want to get Anquan Boldin back, if we want Donte Whitner to come back, we’re going to have to make moves to get them back. And there has to be room for everyone. And that’s something I’m going to let my agent and the organization try to figure out. But hopefully, it’s a position where we can assemble the best team we need.”
It will be an interesting balancing act for the 49ers. Boldin and Whitner are both set to become free agents while other key players like guard Mike Iupati, linebacker Aldon Smith and wide receiver Michael Crabtree are also in line for extensions. That leaves some tough decisions even if Kaepernick does take a little bit less in an extension.