Imagine what Kaepernick's upside is? Even the most ardent Smither would agree that Kap is the Quarterback of the Future eventually, but that the transition was made too soon.

Here we have a kid who has been on national television in the evening in big games almost a half dozen times and wowed the crowd most of those times. But then we see all the "rookie" mistakes and hope that the upside takes off before the inexperience can hinder that.

But in time the rookie mistakes wear off. The Kid learns to be a true bonified NFL Quarterback and learns also how to better manage a game, how to use the pocket better, how to be smarter, the path that took Steve Young almost 10 years to finally master.

You have to wonder that in a few years this guy is going to be PHENOMENAL! He was these skills now and he can overcome Huge Pressure and his own mistakes to still carry the team to high scoring wins over teams like the Patriots and the Packers.

The Smithers, I believe, just hope Kaepernick's lack of experience does not sabotage the team's quest for a Super Bowl this year and that next year and the one after is when he would develop into the Super Bowl calibre Quarterback.

Its just that Kap may have developed quicker than most people had thought he would and here he is now, playing in his second playoff game next week, in a big Conference Final at home at the Stick. Harbuagh saw the diamond in the rough and bet on that horse to win. The other horse was reliable, likeable, and had wracked up some nice stats, but only during the Harbaugh era, meaning that Harbaugh could see that it was the system that made player, and that he truly wanted a player to carry the system to the next level, not be carried by it.

If he pulls off the win next week then we know for a fact that he, and the team, have truly exceeded last year's accomplishment.

Then to win a Super Bowl then he's up there with Peyton Manning and Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers for having one under his belt.

A truly amazing (and totally Kardiac) season.

Sometimes you gotta be careful on which horse you bet on.

But I've always thought that it is better to ride the horse in the direction that it is going.