Birth Mother Of San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Colin Kaepernick Wants To "Reconnect" With Him Now That His Salary Is $1,164,610

The career of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has shifted into the fast lane ever since Coach Jim Harbaugh decided to anoint him as the starter over Alex Smith after Smith got knocked out with a concussion in the 49ers' 24-24 tie with St. Louis on November 11th, 2012. Although Smith is now ready to play, Harbaugh has decided to stick with Kaepernick for the time being, even though the boo-birds are already hollering for Kaepernick's scalp after he made a couple of questionable plays in a 16-13 loss in the return match with the Rams on December 2nd.

Now, all of a sudden, we're finding out that Kaepernick's birth mother wants to "reconnect" with him. Heidi Russo gave up Kaepernick for adoption when he was just an infant because she felt she could not raise him adequately. She was 18 years old, had gotten pregnant out of wedlock, and for undisclosed reasons, did not marry the father. Nevertheless, Russo remained in contact with Colin and his adoptive parents, Rick and Teresa Kaepernick, until Colin turned seven, then the pictures and letters stopped arriving. Since that time, Colin has exchanged a few messages with her, but most of Heidi's tweets have gone unreturned. Heidi professes to have maintained an interest in Colin's growth, having seen Kaepernick play football in person for the first time in 2010 when his University of Nevada-Reno team played at Colorado State. Heidi also professes to have the highest respect for Colin's adoptive parents, who she met again on August 26th, 2012 when she attended the 49ers' preseason game at Denver. Colin did not want to meet with her on that occasion.

Heidi acknowledges the possibility that Colin may not ever want to meet with her. There could be a number of reasons for his reluctance. Denver Broncos tight end Virgil Green, a teammate and roommate of Kaepernick's at Nevada, speculates that Kaepernick might consider it an act of disloyalty towards his adoptive parents to meet with his birth mother. "I've been out to dinner with them and you can see the job they did raising him. I think he would view it as almost treasonous to them to meet with his biological mother or father. They did such a great job giving him everything he needed to be successful in life", explained Green.

But there could be another reason. Colin Kaepernick is now a starting NFL quarterback with a team considered to be a Super Bowl contender. This means a Super Bowl winner's share, in addition to his current salary of $1,164,610. So perhaps Kaepernick is concerned about the possibility that his birth mother wants to renew the relationship in order to exploit him financially. It's happened to other people; highly-paid professional athletes are attractive targets for financial exploitation.

Of course, it is possible that Heidi Russo simply cares about her birth son deeply and genuinely wants to be a part of his life. She's currently a registered nurse, a profession in which there will always be a demand for her services, so it is unlikely that she has any financial problems. But this controversy serves as a reason why it is always best for someone who gives up a child for adoption at birth to permanently remain out of the child's new life, except to make ancestry information available to the child later for medical reasons. If Heidi Russo truly loves her son, she will quit "stalking" him and allow him to be the sole determinant as to whether or not they form a relationship.