Former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson posted a photo on Twitter of himself, Michael Vick and Colin Kaepernick on a football field. The three engaged in a football workout according to reports. This is on the heels of Kaepernick holding a workout during halftime of the University of Michigan spring game last month. But is Kaepernick any closer to being brought in by an NFL team for a workout?
.@MichaelVick, @Kaepernick7 and @ochocinco on the gridiron 🔥
(via @ochocinco) pic.twitter.com/ysPays4PyH
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) April 12, 2022
There is no word on what this workout of former NFL stars consisted of, but there is enough evidence out there from previous workouts to suggest Kaepernick is ready for a real workout.
The NFL continues to make an issue here where there isn’t one. Quarterback is the most scarce position in the league. There are not 64 quarterbacks in the league better than Kaepernick. All 32 starters and their backups? No chance.
The owners are still punishing him for his protests and they are kowtowing to the racist portion of their fan base that might make a little noise if Kaepernick is brought in.
Kaepernick, then a member of the San Francisco 49ers, started protesting racial injustice, police brutality, and oppression during the 2016 season by kneeling during the national anthem. Following that season Kaepernick was a free agent and has remained unsigned since.
In 2017 he filed a grievance against the NFL, accusing the owners of colluding to keep him out of the league. He withdrew the grievance in 2019 after reaching a settlement with the league.
After the racial awakening in the summer of 2020 with the murder of George Floyd, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he wished they’d listened to Kaepernick earlier.
“Well, the first thing I’d say is I wished we had listened earlier, Kaep, to what you were kneeling about and what you were trying to bring attention to. We had invited him in several times to have the conversation, to have the dialogue. I wish we had the benefit of that. We never did and, you know, we would’ve benefited from that. Absolutely,” Goodell said.
The NFL has a poor track record when it comes to caring about anything beyond its bottom line. They are currently facing a federal lawsuit over racial discrimination in hiring practices; and one of its teams gave a man accused by 22 women of sexual assault the highest guaranteed contract in league history.
Sorry, Rog, if we don’t believe you when you say the league would have “benefited” from a dialogue. That ship has long sailed.
But Kaepernick should be given an opportunity to prove he can help a team. He’s paid whatever penance the league has arbitrarily levied on him.
If winning and generating revenue is all that matters why put out a lesser version of the product? Every time a suspect backup quarterback or starter steps on the field, the league and its teams are telling on themselves.
The other alternative is they can come out and say what everyone seems to know is true but won’t say. The teams in the NFL will never bring Colin Kaepernick in for a workout.
