if the NFL owners were sincere (1%ers all) then Colin Kaepernick

[JoeStuckInOH]

13. Is he athletic enough to be an NFL Quarterback? Yes. But his QB style is a bit atypical.

Of the 32 NFL teams, there are maybe 2-4 teams in the in NFL that have offenses directly suited to Kaepernick's QB style. He's a good QB, no doubt, but wherever he goes he would be a backup and when you have an offense, you need a backup QB that already fits your style of offense. For example, if you have a starter that runs a lot of play-action-boot... or a pocket passer... or a read-option type of guy... THAT is what you want in the backup. Similar playing styles. The reason for this is that you want interchangeability. You don't want to have to build two separate offensive schemes to exploit the strengths of two different-styled QBs. And the fact is, the few teams that could utilize a QB like Kaepernick without retooling their offensive schemes don't necessarily have a need for another QB on the roster at this time at a price Kaepernick's skills/experience would command.

So Colin Kaepernick being out of a job it's by and large NOT a racist/political decision.
But there IS a political component to his unemployment (read on).

All that being said, he is certainly athletic and intelligent enough to maybe be a third-string QB somewhere with a shallow talent pool and LEARN to change his own personal game and develop into something he is not currently. But there are 3 potential issues here:

a) Does Colin Kaepernick himself want to invest work reinventing himself as a QB to be more appealing to more teams?

b) Age. He's been a Pro since 2010 and by most metrics, about half done with a fruitful career. Is it worth it for a team to spend resources developing someone with a half-life remaining or put that effort towards younger prospects?

c) Political. During a personal renaissance, he would not see the field. Inevitably, if the 1st and 2nd QBs on that team were shitty, there would be media questioning motives behind his lack of playing time. Not that it should be a valid concern, but perhaps many GMs and head coaches would like to avoid such accusations altogether. And like it or not, whether Kaepernick desires it or not, there will forever be some off-field media attention/distraction surrounding him.


IMO, all things considered his unemployment is about 70/30... 70% lack of need for his style of QB by a vast majority of teams and 30% politically motivated. If he were willing to accept less pay reflective of a 2nd/3rd string quarterback, he could be with a team next week. Otherwise his options are to change how he plays or wait for a team with QB needs that match his style to have a significant injury to their 1st or second string QB.