The 49ers lost Michael Crabtree for most of the 2013 season when he ripped apart his Achilles while running around in shorts. That will suck for so many obvious reasons, most notably his absurd yards after the catch. Of Crabtree’s 1,105 overall receiving yards this past season, 536 of them came after he caught a football.
But there’s a more specific reason for spirit crushing following Crabtree’s tear: his relationship with Colin Kaepernick, which is second only to the sophomore quarterback’s undying affection for giant turtles. Including the playoffs, Kaepernick started 10 games for the 49ers in 2012, and Crabtree was often the subject of his throwing gaze. He averaged 102.3 receiving yards per game while scoring nine of his 12 touchdowns with Kaep as his quarterback.
The potential for haunting nothingness goes far beyond that surface layer, though, and please avert your eyes if you don’t want this quick refresher of the numbing numers we posted in the hours after Crabtree’s injury:
In the playoffs Kaepernick had a QB rating of 139.7 when throwing at Crabtree.
— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) May 22, 2013
Colin Kaepernick targeted Michael Crabtree 27 times on 3rd down and 13 times in the red zone, both more than 3x as much as the next guy.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 22, 2013
#49ers Crabtree was targeted on 39.6% of his routes w/Kaepernick as starter LY (Wks 11-17) only #bears Brandon Marshall was targeted more
— Cecil Lammey (@cecillammey) May 22, 2013
Alright then, so here’s what’s becoming clear: Kaepernick needs to not only find a new favorite target, but also a guy who can stretch the field vertically while vacuuming up those high volume throws. Enter Vernon Davis…maybe.






