Head coach Chip Kelly left the door open for backup quarterback Colin Kaepernick to grab the reins from Blaine Gabbert after the 49ers’ 33-21 loss to the Cardinals on Thursday. It now appears Kaepernick will start the 49ers’ Week 6 game in Buffalo, multiple sources have told Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link).

Gabbert beat out Kaepernick for the 49ers’ starting role over the summer, but the latter wasn’t in football shape after undergoing surgeries on his left knee, left shoulder and right thumb. It’s unknown how physically ready Kaepernick is now, but whether it’s him or fellow backup Christian Ponder – whom some 49ers players reportedly prefer – the free-falling club needs to make a change under center.

As has been the case for most of his six-year career, Gabbert has performed woefully this season. The 10th overall pick of the 2011 draft and former Jaguar has completed just 58 percent of his 150 passes this year with a 5.93 YPA, five touchdowns against six interceptions, and a 69.6 QB rating. Along the way, the 49ers have lost four in a row after winning their opener in resounding fashion, 28-0, over the Rams.

Of the 49ers’ three signal-callers, Kaepernick has easily enjoyed the most on-field success. Before last season, when his numbers dipped significantly in an injury-shortened year, the 2011 second-rounder from Nevada was a major dual threat who combined for 50 touchdowns and 21 interceptions as a passer from 2012-14 while rushing for over 1,500 yards. He also helped lead San Francisco to a Super Bowl berth during the 2012-13 campaign and a place in the NFC title game the next season.

More recently, Kaepernick’s activism has drawn far more attention than his resume as a player. The 28-year-old has become one of America’s most polarizing athletes in recent memory on account of his refusal to stand for the pregame national anthem. In doing so, Kaepernick is protesting racial injustice in America, and his choice has spurred other NFLers to make similar pregame statements.

Regardless of whether Kaepernick reclaims his old job against the Bills, he could go forward with a restructured contract. Kaepernick and the 49ers are working to amend the long-term deal they reached in 2014, meaning he would be able to void the pact after this season.

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49ers quarterback Blaine Gabbert completed just 17 of 36 attempts and threw two interceptions in the team’s 46-27 loss to the Panthers on Sunday. Niners receivers dropped five of Gabbert’s passes, but head coach Chip Kelly still fielded questions about the signal-caller’s job status Monday.

Kelly backed Gabbert, saying, “He’s our starter, and I’ve got a lot of confidence in Blaine. We’re not thinking or talking about not having Blaine in there. It’s about everybody on offense playing better right now.”

Kelly also left himself room to make an eventual change, per Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle, as he said Gabbert had a “week-to-week” hold on the job. Gabbert, whom the Jaguars chose 10th overall in the 2011 draft, has experienced a disappointing NFL career and his play this year has been unremarkable. Before losing to Carolina, the 49ers easily disposed of the Rams, 28-0, in Week 1, but Gabbert’s performance then wasn’t great. Although the 26-year-old completed 22 of 35 attempts against the Rams, didn’t throw a pick, and rushed for 43 yards, he only averaged 4.86 yards per pass.

In total, Gabbert has hit on 39 of 71 tries, put up a meager 5.82 YPA, and amassed three touchdowns against two picks. Gabbert ranks in the league’s bottom five in completion percentage (54.9), YPA and passer rating (74.4). From at least a statistical standpoint, then, Gabbert hasn’t looked like part of the solution in San Francisco. But even if the 49ers do want to replace Gabbert sooner than later, the quarterback he beat out over the summer for the starting job, Colin Kaepernick, doesn’t seem physically ready to take over, as Kroichick notes. Surgeries Kaepernick underwent on his left shoulder, right thumb and left knee limited him in the offseason, and Kelly revealed Monday that the 28-year-old is still working his way up to his ideal playing weight of 225 pounds.

“Usually if you have a knee you can lift with your upper body, and if you have a shoulder you can lift with your lower body. But Kap was really out of the weight room for six-to-eight months,” Kelly stated.

As of last week, Kelly and general manager Trent Baalke were divided on whether the team should retain Kaepernick, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report. Kelly would reportedly like to keep Kaepernick and help him turn into a formidable option again, while Baalke wants to cut ties.

Of course, for multiple reasons, Kaepernick isn’t a run-of-the-mill backup. Before his play began trending downward in 2014, the dual threat helped lead the 49ers to a Super Bowl berth and a place in the NFC title game in his first year and a half as a starter. More recently, Kaepernick has become a polarizing figure on account of his decision not to stand for the pregame national anthem. In doing so, Kaepernick is protesting racial injustice in America, and his choice has spurred other NFLers to make similar pregame statements. The latest example: Several Eagles raised their right fists during the national anthem prior to their game against the Bears on Monday.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.