Sean Powers 
For the last few days, news has been circulating that Colin Kaepernick may be making a return to the NFL. A private workout showcasing the quarterback will take place this Saturday afternoon in Dallas. This news may come as surprising to some people, while others will say it’s long overdue Kaepernick get a shot at returning to the game. Kaepernick famously launched a protest of police brutality against minorities while still playing quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers by refusing to stand for the national anthem before games. This quiet protest became a whirlwind of heated debate that ultimately cost the young quarterback his job. He last played in a game on the first day of January, 2017, and the reasons why he has been unable to land a job have been the source of endless controversy. When it was reported yesterday that for the first time in history, a mid season private workout was being held for Kaepernick, the conversation once again started up. Who would want to sign him? What about the distractions associated with bringing Colin into a team’s locker room? Can he still play at a high level?
It’s been reported that the Cowboys, Lions, Cardinals, Broncos, Buccaneers, Dolphins, Redskins, and Falcons are all interested and will attend the private workout, which gives the impression that Kaepernick’s chances of landing a new job are higher now than they had been in the last few years. While I have no issue with Kaepernick getting a shot at playing again, something about this scenario troubles me on another level. When all the hoopla around Kap began a couple of years ago, no one would publicly admit he was being punished for his protest. Every other excuse was delivered as to why he was unemployed with a completely straight face by coaches and owners alike.
“We already have a quarterback.”
“He had already shown a decline in performance, our decision has nothing to do with his protest.”
So on and so forth, every single team passed on Colin, while other already-retired quarterbacks were given opportunities to play. Quarterbacks with significantly less success in the league than Kaepernick had were still being picked up as insurance policies for teams looking to bolster their roster’s depth. And when Kaepernick’s agents suggested their client was being blackballed, the league acted as if that was a completely ridiculous suggestion.
Apparently, we were supposed to believe that none of those decisions were part of a concerted effort to keep Colin Kaepernick from playing in the NFL. While that already was hard to believe, I can’t help but think the sudden interest of over a half dozen teams two years later is even less of a coincidence. You mean to tell me that after 2 years away from the game- with no external prodding or internal discussions among league executives- all of these teams simultaneously decided Colin Kaepernick is good enough to play in the NFL?
In what way? Did he recently get much quicker from the line of scrimmage? Has he learned to throw with his other arm? Something about this most recent series of developments reeks of the same fishiness that the original story did, only this time with a bit of body spray splashed on, in an attempt to disguise the foul odor. For me, though, it simply isn’t working. There is no way that this entire scenario is anything other than bullshit piled on top of more bullshit. It reminds me very much of a WWE story line, in that the whole thing is pretty entertaining, but to really buy into it requires a suspension of one’s disbelief.
Colin Kaepernick’s story has had many ups and downs, but from an outside perspective, the one thing I’ve taken away from it is that everyone involved is culpable and appropriately smeared in the messy politics that make up the NFL. Here is what the headline should read- “NFL Reeling From Public Backlash and Pressure Will Now Allow A Team To Sign Colin Kaepernick, In Reversal From Previous Off-the-Record Policy.” Anything short of acknowledging that both his banishment and reinstatement were both conscious and collaborative decisions by team owners is a continuation of the extended middle finger the NFL has been giving both fans and players for years now. If and when Colin Kaepernick signs with a team, in a weird way, it will almost be a loss. It will signify a willingness to “put the past behind us” without having fixed any of the problems that got us here in the first place. It feels eerily similar to a child whose parents beat him but then make it up to him with a nice big ice cream sundae- you know this shit will happen again. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday sooner than later, this issue will rear its ugly head once again- that much we can all be sure of.
Oh, and one last thing- I hope he still kneels during the National Anthem, but that’s not a discussion most people are ready to have yet.
