
SANTA CLARA – Quarterback Colin Kaepernick had not thrown an interception in his previous five games, a streak that reached 141 consecutive passing attempts.
But all that came crashing down when he dropped back for the first time Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. Kaepernick's first pass landed in the hands of Cardinals defensive back Justin Bethel and returned for an interception. Three passes later, he tossed another interception that ended up being returned for a touchdown.
Kaepernick had a disastrous day. Afterward, he stated he felt as if he single-handedly was the reason for his team’s 47-7 loss. Coach Jim Tomsula began fielding questions about Kaepernick’s job status.
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While the coach admitted to widespread frustration, Kaepernick said he watched the film Sunday evening and Monday before he “moved onto Green Bay.”
As for the labeling of any emotions he felt after throwing a career-worst four interceptions and compiling a lowly passer rating of 16.7, Kaepernick wanted no part of that.
[RELATED: Tomsula: With Kaepernick, 49ers 'not a drop-back team']
“I’m not too big on feelings,” Kaepernick said. “Feelings aren’t going to help me win a game. I’m focused on doing what I can to help this team win.”
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During the course of Sunday’s performance against the Cardinals, Kaepernick looked tentative at times. He did not respond well to pressure and he missed open receivers. But he and Tomsula said confidence is not an issue as the 49ers head into Sunday’s game against Green Bay after losing at Pittsburgh and Arizona by a combined 65 points.
Kaepernick has a history against the Packers. The 49ers are 3-0, including two postseason victories, in games Kaepernick has faced Green Bay as the starter. He rushed for a quarterback-record 181 yards in a 2012 playoff game. He threw for a career-high 412 yards in the opener the next season. And in January 2014, Kaepernick led the 49ers to playoff victory in wind chill of minus-10 degrees at Lambeau Field.
“I have confidence in myself as far as being able to go out and help this team win,” Kaepernick said. “What other people think of how I play and how I go about things really isn’t something I worry about.”
Said Tomsula, “I look at it comprehensively, collectively. One of my concerns right now is not that our quarterback or our confidence level in those areas is going to go down the tubes. I don’t have that.”
Tomsula said this week that he does not view his offense as being built to be a drop-back passing team. Kaepernick recorded his fourth regular-season 300-yard passing game a week earlier against the Steelers and there appeared to be advancements made in the 49ers’ passing game.
“I think our offense is complimentary,” Kaepernick said. “We do things in the run game to set up the pass game. We do things in the pass game to set up the run game. It’s not a defining term of whether we drop back or whether we’re a running football team. We have to be able to do everything.”
Tomsula said he has liked the attitude of the players as they got back to work this week, looking to correct the many issues that have been exposed the past two games. Kaepernick said the team has taken a close look at what aspects can be corrected.
“Just players trying to figure out how to win,” he said. “What we need to do, what we need to change, to make sure that we’re on the right track.
“It’s not necessarily adjustments. There’s things that, I might want to go somewhere else with the ball. I might want to check to a different play. There’s a lot of different things that go into it depending on the play.”