49ers’ Kaepernick: ‘I was looking at different opportunities’

Before Thursday, Colin Kaepernick had made one trade request, had two surgeries, had two meetings with Broncos general manager John Elway and conducted zero interviews in the previous 157 days.

[...] yes, there were a few items to discuss when the 49ers quarterback had his long-awaited meeting with reporters after the final practice of a three-day minicamp.

[...] what about the trade request that launched endless headlines, Colin?

“Organizations at the end of the season go through and evaluate their personnel and opportunities and that was something where I sat down with my team and we did the same thing,” Kaepernick said.

Despite his trade request, Kaepernick said he hadn’t spoken general manager Trent Baalke since he reported for the offseason program in early April.

Kaepernick had procedures on his non-throwing shoulder, right thumb and knee.

Kaepernick said the severity of his injuries became clear when he sought an outside opinion.

During his 18-minute interview, Kaepernick, who often been terse with reporters, politely swatted away follow-up questions connected to his trade request.

[...] after a member of the public-relations staff attempted to cut off the session after 10 minutes, Kaepernick extended the interview.

[...] to the front-office questions, Kaepernick was happy to discuss Kelly, whom he termed a “phenomenal” coach who ran an offense that was “great” for his double-threat skills.

Kaepernick, who was cleared to participate in everything expect team drills during this week’s minicamp, said he will be fully cleared for the start of training camp in late July.