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Former San Francisco 49ers head coach and current NFL Network analyst Steve Mariucci believes that Jim Harbaugh will stick with Colin Kaepernick as the team's starting quarterback.
"My guess is, we've heard (Harbaugh) say, 'I'm going to go with the hot hand,' I think he's going to stay with Colin Kaepernick. It's a tough call because, remember, the Niners were 13-3 with Alex last year -- just a fumble away from going to the Super Bowl and that wasn't his fault. So Alex really has done nothing other than getting hurt to lose his job."
Kaepernick, who took over under center when starting quarterback Alex Smith went down with a concussion in Week 10, has led the 49ers to a 2-0-1 record and created a bit of a quarterback controversy in the Bay Area. The 25-year-old performed so well in place of Smith in Week 11 that Harbaugh elected to start him at quarterback in the 49ers 31-21 win over the New Orleans Saints last Sunday even though Smith had been cleared to play.
In eight games, Kaepernick has thrown for 680 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 214 yards and four touchdowns.
Harbaugh is expected to name his starter for Sunday's game against the St. Louis Rams in the middle of the week.
Kickoff is scheduled for 10 a.m. PT at the Edward Jones Dome and the game will be televised on FOX.