Report: Seahawks not signing Colin Kaepernick because they think he can start

The Seattle Seahawks emerged as the most likely suitor for Colin Kaepernick over the past week or so, but it does not appear they are going to sign the quarterback. Why? That depends who you ask.

Over the weekend, NFL Media’s Mike Garafolo reported that the Seahawks have not signed Kaepernick for financial reasons. According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, money has nothing to do with it. Instead, Florio was told by a source that Seattle’s decision to not sign Kaepernick was “strategic” because they think he is worthy of being a starter. Here’s more:

Instead, the Seahawks have made the strategic decision not to add a player they regard as starting-caliber because they have a starter. While that could change if their starter suffers a serious injury, the reluctance of a team driven by competition to embrace a competitive option seems odd — unless the Seahawks don’t want to have an in-house option to which the Russell Wilson Resenters can point if/when he struggles during the regular season.

Currently, Trevone Boykin and Jake Heaps are the only other candidates to play, and no one will be clamoring for either of them. If the Seth Wickersham article regarding the belief that the Seahawks don’t hold Wilson accountable is accurate, the Seahawks have every reason to resist adding a player behind whom certain players could rally.

The Wickersham article that Florio referred to was the explosive feature about Richard Sherman and the Seahawks that came out last month. While Sherman was the main subject, the piece also highlighted the supposed “resentment” players hold toward Wilson. You can read more about that here.

In other words, the Seahawks may be hesitant to sign Kaepernick out of fear that some members of the team will want him as the starter instead of Wilson. Many will argue that off-field reasons have more to do with it, and that could be the case. In any event, Kaepernick is still in search of a job.