Colin Kaepernick was the recipient of the San Francisco 49ers' Len Eshmont Award, given to the 49er who "best exemplifies the inspirational and courageous play of Len Eshmont, an original member of the 1946 49ers team."

The award, which was established after Eshmont died in 1957, is considered the most prestigious honor the players vote on.

After sitting down for the national anthem before a preseason game, Kaepernick has knelt during the anthem for the entire season.

Colin Kaepernick can be a free agent in 2017 and his future with the San Francisco 49ers remains uncertain as they rebuild.

On Tuesday, Kaepernick also shot down speculation he might turn to political and social pursuits full time when he offered an emphatic "yes" when asked whether he "for sure wanted to play in the NFL next season." 

Kaepernick has had some good moments this season and has seemed to have a good relationship with Chip Kelly. Kaepernick previously expressed gratitude for the support he received from Kelly for his protests. Those protests also have been better received in the Bay Area than they've been in other NFL markets, which could be appealing to Kaepernick.

Kaepernick is also healthy again and said he feels he has "gotten more and more back to myself" as the weeks have gone by.

"It has been a long time since I've felt this good," Kaepernick said. "I just felt fluid on the field. For me, that's something I want to be able to continue to build on and, especially moving forward, making sure that I'm doing everything to keep myself here and being able to improve that.

"I do know this is the best I've felt in a long time and, once again, I'm excited about that."

Chip Kelly expects to discuss his status for 2017 as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers after the final game of the season.

“I’m concerned with Seattle," Kelly said. "That’s not a discussion, shouldn’t be discussed during the season. So, we’ll discuss it after the season.”

Kelly has previously said he has regular meetings with the Yorks and general manager Trent Baalke throughout the season. Kelly said Monday he sees CEO Jed York and co-owner John York in the locker room after every game. None of those meetings has focused on Kelly's status past the 2016 season.

The 49ers enter Week 17 with a 2-13 record.

Kelly signed a four-year, $24 million contract in the offseason.

Carlos Hyde suffered a torn MCL in the 49ers' Week 16 win over the Rams.

Hyde suffered the injury when he was hit in the left leg on a carry. Hyde walked off the field under his own power but did not return.

"It didn't feel that bad when it first happened. It's pain, there's some pain, but it didn't feel like bad pain. I've felt worse," Hyde said after Saturday's win. "That's why I was able to get up and walk off on my own."

Hyde nearly rushed for 1,000 yards this season to go with six touchdowns.

The NFL has very teams this season that excel in all facets of the game. Further evidence of this issue shows itself in the fact that there is only one team ranking in the top-10 in both Football Outsiders' Offensive and Defensive DVOA: the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers are 9-5 after winning five straight games and must beat the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16 to ensure their place in the playoffs. Pittsburgh ranks third in total DVOA and first in Weighted DVOA.

Last season, the Seattle Seahawks, Carolina Panthers, Arizona Cardinals, Cincinnati Bengals and Kansas City Chiefs ranked in the top-10 on both sides of the ball. The Chiefs are the closest team to joining the Steelers in the top-10 in both Offensive and Defensive DVOA at 13th and 12th.

The Dallas Cowboys and New England Patriots rank first and second overall in DVOA as they rank second and third, respectively in Offensive DVOA but 20th and 19th in Defensive DVOA. The Atlanta Falcons rank first in Offensive DVOA, 27th in Defensive and fourth overall. The Green Bay Packers and Oakland Raiders have similar splits as the Cowboys and Patriots, while the Seahawks, Baltimore Ravens and New York Giants are the inverse of those teams with top-5 defenses and offenses below the NFL mean.

Steve Young has been disapointed by the San Francisco 49ers' 2016 season and is pessimistic about things changing in the future as long as ownership and upper management continue their current paths.

Young was sharp in his criticism of the York family.

“In the NFL, you don’t have to win to make money,” Young said on KNBR. “The greatest growth equity value teams are not necessarily the winners. In fact, if you think about the 49ers in the last 15 years since the Yorks owned the team, you’re talking about equity values that went from — I’m just rough now — $200 million in 2000 to well over maybe $2 billion. It’s like 10 times or more. It’s like Silicon Valley. That’s one of the great success stories of any tech business anywhere.

“That’s (the York’s) A-game. Their equity value in the team is their A game, it’s what drives them. It’s what drives most of the owners. It’s what matters. It’s what they think about. It’s what they talk about. And the B-game, is whether we win some games. It’s not that you don’t want to, or you don’t really want to, or it’s not really important. It’s just not the A-game. And so when it’s not the A-game, that’s the biggest issue with the NFL, is that success doesn’t track to success on the field. So you’re not held accountable.

“So no matter what we decide to do here, and my opinion is when you’re 1-12 or 1-13 of if we end up 1-15, to me by definition, everybody out to the parking lot. Every living thing out to the parking lot. And nobody gets back in unless you can prove you’re part of the solution. I mean everybody. That’s a tough thing to do because you might have to start over in all kinds of ways.”

Young said ownership has to decide if they want to change enough to put a winner on the field.

“And the calculus is, should we start over? Should we wipe the place out? Should we leave Trent (Baalke) and maybe do a coach? But that doesn’t look right because we kept a coaching carousel, so let Chip (Kelly) come. Who’s going to be with Chip? Because it’s all this calculus has to go on. And it really, as an ex-player who’s been around a long time, it’s frustrating to watch. Because it’s never true merit, true everyone in the parking lot and you literally are barred unless you can prove your value that makes this thing move forward.”

The Denver Broncos are the most likely landing spot for Trent Baalke if he's fired as general manager of the San Francisco 49ers as expected.

Baalke has served as the 49ers’ general manager since January 2011 after one season working in that role as vice president of player personnel following Scot McCloughan’s departure from the organization.

Jed York has yet to make a final decision on Baalke's future.

Baalke was asked about reports suggesting he will be fired before Sunday's game.

“I don’t worry about it. It is what it is,” Baalke said. “I’m going to keep putting my head down and going to work. It’s just something you can’t control. You try and control the things that you can control."

After the San Francisco 49ers lost their twelfth consecutive game on Sunday, Chip Kelly took the blame for a cautious offensive approach.

The 49ers lost 23-17 in overtime after leading the New York Jets by 14 points at one point.

Kelly agreed that San Francisco had been too conservative offensively in the second half.

“That’s on me as the playcaller, but I just really wasn’t confident," Kelly said. "You lost Vance [McDonald]. You lost Torrey [Smith]. You’ve got two new guys in there on the offensive line. I was making sure we were good with protection. They were bringing a lot of zero blitzes. You’ve got to get the ball off quick. Make sure that we’ve got the guys picked up, but yeah, that’s on me."

The San Francisco 49ers are widely expected to fire Trent Baalke as general manager. Baalke is viewed as a loyal and trusted employee with deep ties to Jed York but the roster has been one of the worst in the NFL.

Several NFL owners believe Jed York's parents, Denise and John York, will be taking a more hands-on approach with the team as they determine how to reposition the franchise, and Mike Shanahan, who has been under consideration for coaching openings there in the past, could join the 49ers in a coaching and/or executive capacity.

A final determination on the future of Chip Kelly will likely be made once the 49ers sort out their front office situation.

San Francisco fired Jim Tomsula after just one season as head coach.

The San Francisco 49ers benched Colin Kaepernick late in the team's loss to the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

The 49ers were trailing by 22 points when they went to Blaine Gabbert. The final score was 26-6.

Kaepernick went 1-for-5 with four yards passing in the snowy game.

"I was surprised. It wasn't something I expected ... It's not my place to really argue on the sideline," Kaepernick said. "I want to make sure I do what I can help this team win and that was the decision that was made so I'm going to support my teammates."