The San Francisco 49ers got an unexpected win in Week 9 as the team beat the Atlanta Falcons despite all of the changes on the roster in the past week. Without Colin Kaepernick under center or Reggie Bush and Carlos Hyde in the backfield, the 49ers looked like an improved team as they dominated the Falcons. Blaine Gabbert notched his first win in the Bay Area as the quarterback could be the favored option going forward for San Francisco.
After getting the starting nod over Kaepernick who was being benched to "breathe" for a week, Gabbert made the most of his opportunity. He finished the day going 15 of 25 for 185 yards and two touchdowns while also notching two interceptions. He also rushed for 32 yards off eight carries. Head coach Jim Tomsula was pleased with what he saw from his quarterback, but made no guarantees that Gabbert continues as the starter moving forward.
"Gabbert was our starter today, and I don't have a comment past that," Tomsula said, via CSNBayArea.com. "Blaine had a great day today. I'll talk about what a great job Blaine Gabbert did today, and what a great job the team did today in getting a win."
The 49ers have a bye week which gives Tomsula plenty of time to consider the quarterback situation moving forward. After benching Kaepernick for Week 9, the team has reportedly not lost faith in him. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, the 49ers still believe in Kaepernick as a franchise quarterback. They simply benched him for poor play in the short-term and not the long-term. Kaepernick has faced plenty of questions regarding his future with the franchise. With a contract easy to get rid of, the quarterback could be headed for a release or trade should he not get on the field for the remainder of the season.
In the meantime, the 49ers will focus on improving as a team and not just at the quarterback spot. Dropped passes were an issue for the receiver while the run game held up well considering the injuries. Bush has been lost for the long-term while Hyde is out for the short-term. According to ESPN.com, Hyde is dealing with a stress fracture. It is unclear if a bye week is enough to heal the injury, but Pierre Thomas and Shaun Draughn did their best to keep things afloat in that aspect. Both rushers along with Kendall Gaskins held up well and that three-man rotation could continue should Hyde be out longer than expected.
