It remains to be seen how many teams will send representatives on Saturday to the workout the NFL has set up for Colin Kaepernick, but apparently interest in the free agent quarterback was part of the motivation for the league holding the event.
According to multiple reports, the NFL organized a workout for Kaepernick in part because teams had been reaching out to the league to inquire about the 32-year-old. Albert Breer of The MMQB said some teams indicated to NFL football operations people that they had interest in Kaepernick but did not take any action by inviting him to a private workout or interview.
4) The NFL wanted it at a team facility, making a Saturday after a team had already left for a road game the most feasible option.
5) The NFL planned it in response to teams reaching to their football ops people on Kaepernick, without taking any action.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) November 14, 2019
Steve Wyche of NFL Network had a similar report on Wednesday when he noted that teams were calling the NFL to inquire about Kaepernick’s “readiness” but were unwilling to bring him in for a workout. Since the teams did not want to invite Kaepernick to visit them, Wyche says the NFL decided “OK, we’re going to do this for you. We’re gonna pay for this workout to happen.”
Part of my report on the Kaepernick workout Saturday in Atlanta. I also reported on NFL Now @nflnetwork that Kaepernick and his reps can submit questions and control much of the narrative for a video interview that will be sent to teams. pic.twitter.com/OlV2KSMlDN
— Steve Wyche (@wyche89) November 13, 2019
That information is a bit surprising, especially if it came directly from the league. Kaepernick, of course, has accused NFL teams of colluding against him, and teams calling the NFL to inquire about Kaepernick might indicate there is collusion on some level. Wyche made it seem like the NFL tried to avoid that by essentially telling teams, “Why are you asking us?”
Breer added that teams have been “skittish” about bringing Kaepernick in because of what happened when the Seahawks and Ravens considered signing him.
It is. One thing I would say on that — Some teams have been skittish because of what happened with Seattle and Baltimore when they considered Kaepernick.
In the former case, details of conversations leaked immediately. In the latter, the owner and an iconic player got crushed. https://t.co/Cw00ZmL5nx
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) November 14, 2019
In Seattle, a lot of information leaked out that made it seem as though the team was trying to get Kaepernick to agree to drop his national anthem protest. With Baltimore, Kaepernick’s girlfriend created some unflattering headlines with her tweet about Ray Lewis and Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti.
Some will argue that the NFL setting up a workout for Kaepernick is a public relations move, while others say the league is trying to pave the way for him to be signed by essentially taking the hit from fans who want Kaepernick to remain unemployed. The reality is it is not that simple, and those two things aren’t mutually exclusive. If Kaepernick still wants to play, it’s hard to argue that a workout won’t help his chances of making that happen.
