Jim Harbaugh Told His Father That Colin Kaepernick Was the Best Player in the Draft, the Night Before He Was Drafted

Jack Harbaugh, father of both John and Jim Harbaugh, has been prominent with the media during this week. He provided an interesting quote from Jim Harbaugh the night before the second round of the 2011 draft.

Jack asked Jim which quarterback they were going to take in the second round. After expressing suspicion and asking his own father if anyone else was in the room, he said:

"“He said, ‘We’re drafting Colin Kaepernick’ He said, ‘I not only think he’s the best quarterback in the draft, I think that he’s the best football player in the draft. And we’re going with Colin Kaepernick.”"

Two fascinating things about this. The first that he didn’t want to tell his own father–the problem with having another successful brother for a head coach. The other? If he was really the best football player in the draft, San Francisco took a great risk in not taking him sooner. That would mean they took someone they did not think was the best player available at #7 (Aldon Smith), and risked someone else getting him in a draft where five quarterbacks were selected before Kaepernick.

[photo via USA Today Sports Images]