A 53-yard touchdown pass to Torrey Smith highlighted Colin Kaepernick's first start of the 2016 season.
The second quarter throw was the San Francisco 49ers lone touchdown on a day that resulted in a 45-16 loss to the Buffalo Bills. Kaepernick finished the game with 187 passing yards, no interceptions and 66 rushing yards.
"It felt great to be on the field again," Kaepernick said. "I was very excited. It felt good to be out there and try to help my team win."
The one pass Kaepernick said he wanted back came on the game's opening drive. Smith beat his man on a deep post route, and the quarterback overthrew his open receiver. Had they connected, the play would have gone for a 41-yard touchdown.
"I think that might have been a little juice of being out there and having that opportunity," Kaepernick said. "I saw the coverage and knew we had it, I just let it fly a little too long."
Kaepernick did have a few impressive scrambles that looked like vintage No. 7. A 29-yard run set up a Phil Dawson field goal. On another play, the quarterback escaped a near safety and turned the would-be loss into a 10-yard gain.
Third down continued to be an area of concern for the 49ers offense. San Francisco converted just 3-of-13 attempts, compared to the Bills, who went 8-of-13. Kaepernick also noted that the 49ers offense needs to find ways to score touchdowns rather than settle for field goals.
The loss marks San Francisco's fifth straight as the 49ers now claim a 1-5 record.
"We have to go in and correct things, make sure everyone is on the same page," Kaepernick said. "We can't make the mistakes that we've been making. We can't hurt ourselves in situations and when there's opportunities to make plays, we have to be able to make those."
When asked, Chip Kelly did not confirm whether or not Kaepernick would start in Week 7 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. "We'll see," was the head coach's response.
Kaepernick hopes his play on Sunday will earn him the starting role for another week.
"That's not for me to say," Kaepernick said. "I went out and played as hard as I could, gave this team everything I had, and I'll continue to do that every week they let me."
