Joe Montana Compares Colin Kaepernick to Tim Tebow 3
Sep 1991; San Francisco, CA, USA; Joe Montana of the San Francisco 49ers in action during the 1991 season at Candlestick Park (unknown date) Mandatory Credit: Photo By USA TODAY Sports Copyright (c) USA TODAY Sports

Legendary NFL quarterback Joe Montana doesn’t foresee a future under center for free agent Colin Kaepernick—and politics is only part of it.

Joe Montana has forgotten more about football than most of us could ever hope to know. A four-time Super Bowl champion, three-time Super Bowl MVP and eight-time Pro-Bowl selection, when Montana talks about the game, we listen.

Earlier this week, the Hall of Fame QB spoke to Sporting News’ Kristian Dyer about Colin Kaepernick’s current situation and whether the free agent will be on an NFL roster when the season begins. His prognosis wasn’t encouraging, especially if you’re a Kaepernick fan.

“I’m not sure, I think [if] there’s an injury somewhere he probably gets in,” Montana said. “In most cases, you look at Tim Tebow — a great guy and everybody was talking about him. But what it comes down to is 40 percent completion or even in the low 50s, you can’t win in the league with that. You won’t be in the league very long. It comes down to his play as much as anything.”

Montana thinks that he can compare Tebow, who only started 14 games in the NFL, to Kaepernick, who has started 58. That’s not entirely fair. The only true common trait these two athletes share is that their names have been all over the media the past two years.

It all started last season when Kaepernick protested the way he believes minorities are treated in the United States by refusing to stand for the national anthem.

While Montana believes Kaepernick’s on-field play has something to do with his inability to sign with an NFL team, “Joe Cool” thinks Kaepernick’s defiant stand plays a part as well. “One of the things you don’t look for is distractions in the locker room,” Montana remarked.

Montana hasn’t been the only Hall of Fame QB to talk about Kaepernick this year. Instead of blaming personal actions by Kaepernick, Kurt Warner took his anger out on the coaches when appearing on San Diego’s 1090 AM.

“Now, we’re getting the best athletes, we’re putting him on the field — the Johnny Manziels, the Robert Griffin IIIs, the Colin Kaepernicks — and the problem is, these coaches aren’t taking the time to develop and prepare these guys for the next level.”

Aside from both being labeled “distractions,” Tebow’s struggles to find employment in the NFL aren’t really comparable to Kaepernick’s.

That ultimately makes Montana’s comments irrelevant.