This season, sportscasters and writers are waging an all-out blitz on NFL teams to sign the renegade free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick. The dismissal of Denver's backup quarterback and the poor play of quarterbacks in Jacksonville and New York have heightened media demands for their man Kap. For NFL beat reporters and talk show hosts, calling for Kaepernick's return to pro football has practically been a routine part of their work for the past two seasons.
The headline of a pro-Kaepernick story by USA Today's Steven Ruiz reads: "Broncos passing on Colin Kaepernick looks even more ridiculous after Chad Kelly's arrest." Kelly was Denver's backup QB until he got arrested for causing a public disturbance in a Buffalo bar early Sunday morning. He was later released by the team. Denver had considered trading for Kaepernick in the past, but didn't go through with it.
Ruiz refuted claims that Kaepernick would be a distraction for any team that signed the originator of the NFL anthem protests. "Kaepernick quietly protested before football games. If he’s a 'distraction,' then what word do we use for Kelly?"
For the record, the New York Giants' and Baltimore Ravens' owners said last year that they have heard from many fans who want no part of Kaepernick or protesters on their teams.
Kaepernick should be included in the Broncos' search to replace Kelly on the roster, though, Ruiz says. "But we know that won’t happen. And the reasoning will have nothing to do with him being a distraction or an unrefined passer or someone who’s not committed to playing football. That’s actually Elway’s type," said the Kaepernick cheerleader.
Speaking on the Fox Sports 1 program First Things First Monday, retired receiver Cris Carter (seen in photo above) said the Jaguars ought to just suck it up and hire Kaepernick. Jacksonville benched starter Blake Bortles last week during the Jags' third straight loss. The Huffington Post's Andy McDonald reported on Carter playing this as Kaepernick being the victim of politics:
“This is just free advice. Swallow your pride, pick up the phone and call Kap. Now you wanna galvanize your locker room? You have a problem with that defense? Call Kap. Bring Kap to the locker room. Let's see if Kap can change it, because he's better than the quarterback you have. And I just believe right now, in the season ... I believe he could make a difference in that football team. There's a lotta teams in the same spot as the Jags ... . They (Jacksonville) made a mistake by not signing Kap. They know it behind the scenes, Nick (Wright) and I know it. They talked to Kap, but we know it. Look, it was strictly a political decision. ... .”
McDonald acknowledged that since his final season in the NFL in 2016 Kaepernick has been "a divisive figure in the NFL for sitting and kneeling during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial inequality."
Here's another example of Kaepernick mania. Sixteen days ago, ESPN's Kaepernick apologist Max Kellerman ranted on the First Take program that the time has come for the New York Giants to park quarterback Eli Manning on the bench and hand over the quarterbacking reins to Kaepernick.
Kaepernick icontinues to train in case he ever gets the chance to play in the NFL again. He and former teammate Eric Reid, the first player to join him in protesting during the anthem back in 2016 and now a member of the Carolina Panthers, have both sued the NFL. They claim NFL owners colluded to keep them out of the league, and even though Reid is now playing again he has not dropped his grievance.
Reid had also filed a grievance against Cincinnati, alleging the Bengals negotiated in bad faith with him last spring. He said the Bengals had no intention to sign him if he said he would continue to kneel. Earlier this week an arbitrator "sacked" this legal claim by denying Reid's charges against Cincinnati.
