Colin Kaepernick's parents annoyed by criticism of his tattoos

Colin Kaepernick's tattoos include Bible verses. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Colin Kaepernick's sudden rise to 49ers starting quarterback has dropped an avalanche of unanticipated attention on the second-year player -- and his parents aren't happy about some of it.

Kaepernick's tattoo-covered arms recently drew criticism from Sporting News columnist David Whitley, who wrote:

San Francisco’s Colin Kaepernick is going to be a big-time NFL quarterback. That must make the guys in San Quentin happy...

...NFL quarterback is the ultimate position of influence and responsibility. He is the CEO of a high-profile organization, and you don’t want your CEO to look like he just got paroled.

Rick and Teresa Kaepernick, Colin's adoptive parents told USA Today they were aggravated by Whitley's comparing their son to inmates.

"It annoyed me," Teresa said. "You are categorizing this kid on something like tattoos? Really? Saying other guys are role models because they don't have them? Really? Some of these other guys don't have crystal clear reputations. That's how you're going to define this kid? It's pretty irritating, but it is what it is."

Colin's parents would like to set the record straight: Their son is a 4.0 high school student who's never been arrested. While they admittedly weren't excited about Colin's decision to get his tattoos while playing at Nevada, they agreed that he was old enough to make his own decisions.

And those controversial tattoos? Those are Bible verses inscribed on Colin's biceps.

"Colin's a fairly religious kid, but he's not in your face about it," Rick said. "It's more about him and what he believes."