Colin Kaepernick reportedly met with John Elway

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick met with Denver Broncos general manager John Elway on Thursday.

There has been speculation all offseason that the 49ers would eventually trade Kaepernick and get rid of both his poor play and contract. It seems the Broncos have been the most interested in getting a deal done, and both Kaepernick and Elway met on Thursday to discuss the particulars, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Also on Thursday, Kaepernick’s $11.9 million salary became guaranteed for this season, making this deal more complicated. San Franciscoi won’t be releasing him, so Denver will need to get a trade done with general manager Trent Baalke. As for the salary cap, these two teams are on polar opposite ends of the spectrum. San Francisco has the most cap space in the league at $53.8 million while Denver has the least at $1.6 million.

To make a trade work, Elway has to either significantly lower Kaepernick’s number – likely by giving him more guarantees and perhaps an extra year on his contract – or create ample space. That could partially be done by releasing Ryan Clady, opening up $9.5 million. The 49ers would also still likely want a second or third-round pick, something they have been pining for.

Denver is stuck here because it is trying to defend a Super Bowl title but has no quarterback. At the moment, the only options on the roster are Mark Sanchez and Trevor Semien. While Kaepernick is nothing special, he’s better than both of those players. In 2015 Kaepernick was benched for Blaine Gabbert and then had three surgeries to end his season after throwing for 1,615 yards with six touchdowns and five interceptions.