Former San Francisco 49ers Quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, is looking to make his return to football after being away for six seasons. Kaepernick was a skillful player for the 49ers but is mostly known for his controversial kneeling during the US National Anthem. Many people supported Kaepernick's message for standing against injustice, while others bashed him for disrespecting the United States.
(Via Getty Images)
Whether or not Kaepernick will return to the league or not is unknown at this time, but there is a misconception about his departure from football. Colin Kaepernick was not cut because of his protest but because he voided his own contract with the 49ers and left under his own willpower. Kaepernick's departure came after two mediocre seasons in 2015 and 2016 where he competed with backup Quarterback Blaine Gabbert for the starting position. When he and the 49ers could not agree to an extension, he opted out of his contract to search for a more lucrative deal elsewhere. Some point out that he may have been cut anyway, but the 49ers wanted him back for less money to free up cap space.
Kaepernick has not found a new home in NFL free agency and has not helped himself during contract negotiations. Several teams across the league were unwilling to sign Kaepernick due to his high contract demands and unwillingness to negotiate for less. Kaepernick was not a lock for the starting quarterback role, so why would he be paid like one? It is not smart to pay a handsome sum of money to a quarterback who is not playing consistently elite football. Although it seemed that Kaepernick was blackballed from the NFL, it was his unwillingness to sign an appropriate contract that is why he is not in the league today.
Although Kaepernick's professional career was in question, it seemed that he would get one more chance. In 2017, the Baltimore Ravens were genuinely interested in signing Kaepernick, who was supported by former Ravens star Linebacker, Ray Lewis. Unfortunately for Kaepernick, his chances of signing with the organization were soon diminished. Kaepernick's girlfriend Nessa Diab tweeted an offensive photo comparing Ray Lewis and Ravens owner, Steve Bisciotti to characters from the movie Django Unchained, with Bisciotti likened to a cruel plantation owner and Lewis, his slave. She finished the tweet with an emoji of an arrow hitting a target, as if to say that her comparison was accurate. Unsurprisingly, the Ravens organization was rightfully unhappy with Diab’s racist tweet and Kaepernick went unsigned because of it.
(via Twitter)
Still wanting to play football, Colin Kaepernick was approached with two opportunities, spring football startup leagues, the Alliance of American Football (AAF), and later the Extreme Football League (XFL). Both organizations offered Kaepernick a spot in their respective leagues but Kaepernick's asking price of $20 million was too high. This obviously was not feasible, as the AAF faced financial trouble and he did not sign with them. The XFL was caught in a similar situation, with Kaepernick setting a high price for himself that the XFL could not match. When asked to comment, XFL commissioner Oliver Luck said “We have some pretty significant salary restrictions, you know. We're a start-up league, so we want to make sure that we can be fiscally responsible and fiscally prudent. And the, you know, salary requirements that some folks, you know, shared with us were in our case exorbitant, so we, you know, couldn't go down that path.” After being unwilling to negotiate again, he did not sign.
The NFL reached out to Kaepernick's camp with a private workout in front of all 32 team owners. Although the league did offer this tryout, it appeared more to be a “you can’t say we didn’t try” move than anything else. The NFL has never offered a private tryout for a player hoping to return to the league, and chances are, this was so the NFL could distance themselves from controversy. The NFL still went ahead and offered invites to the other teams and even hosted the workout in the Falcons stadium, Kaepernick instead went to a high school near Atlanta to workout, raising some eyebrows.
Despite the controversies, Kaepernick still wants to return to the NFL, staying in shape and posting practice drills to social media. Kaepernick, along with many others, make a compelling case that he is being blackballed by the NFL. Despite wanting to return to the league, Kaepernick has openly compared the NFL to slavery. Regardless of Kaepernick's political views, it is unlikely that he will return to the league. Kaepernick's return to the league is possible, but first, Kaepernick must change his attitude. For example, in November of 2021, Kaepernick stated he is “prepared to take a team to the Super Bowl.” Kaepernick has not played NFL football for several years and the only way he should get a starting job is if he earns it as he has previously. Furthermore, Kaepernick must be willing to accept less money, as it would be unwise to give a lucrative sum of money to a player who has not suited up in over five years.
The chances of Kaepernick making an NFL comeback are slim. Ignoring Kaepernick's political positions, it would not be wise to pay a player an amount of money that would not match his on-field value. If Kaepernick is willing to lower his asking price, however, he may be able to return to the league he once worked so hard to get to.
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