Bills offer harsh critiques of 49ers’ Kaepernick

Colin Kaepernick’s head coach said he played “OK” Sunday.

His opponent was less generous.

The Bills defenders provided harsh critiques of the 49ers quarterback after he completed 13 of 29 passes for 187 yards and a touchdown in a 45-16 loss at Buffalo. It was Kaepernick’s first start since Nov. 1.

“This is his first game in a long time,” Bills linebacker Zach Brown said. “So you knew he was going to be rusty. So you just had to get him out of the pocket, make bad throws, make him try and run the ball and make bad decisions. They did, and it worked.”

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick throws a pass against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. Buffalo won 45-16. (AP Photo/Bill Wippert) San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick throws a pass against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. Buffalo won 45-16. (AP Photo/Bill Wippert) Photo: Bill Wippert, Associated Press Photo: Bill Wippert, Associated Press Image 1 of / 32 Caption Close Bills offer harsh critiques of 49ers’ Kaepernick 1 / 32 Back to Gallery

And that was the nice stuff.

The most withering assessments of Kaepernick’s play were in this story from Bleacher Report’s Tyler Dunne, who previously covered the Bills for the Buffalo News.

Dunne quoted one anonymous player as saying Kaepernick is “done” and “terrible” and is “more of a distraction than a contributing member of the team.”

Cornerback Stephon Gilmore spoke on the record.

“We wanted to do everything we could to make him throw the ball,” Gilmore said. “I mean, he's an athlete. You can't take that from him. But when it comes to passing the ball, he can't really throw ... We took advantage of that.”

Outside linebacker Lorenzo Alexander offered that Kaepernick did a “great job,” but he said that in reference to his ability to run zone-read plays. Kaepernick rushed for 66 yards on eight carries, turned a would-be safety into a 10-yard gain and had a 29-yard scamper.

“He did a great job today,” Alexander said. “It’s always hard when you’re playing a read zone team because you have to be so disciplined, you can’t really let it go. You almost have to hold back and almost just stay out in front of him.

“Because you saw when we did get guys up the field and get some pressure, he was able to find those holes and create some big plays with his legs and extend drives early in the game.”

Alexander finished by explaining the calculus changed after the Bills began pulling away: Kaepernick completed 5 of 18 passes in the second half.

“It was really our offense getting that big lead,” Alexander said. “And then he had to stay in there and try to throw from the pocket and try to win the game.”

Twitter: @Eric_Branch