Seahawks Will Attend Unemployed QB Colin Kaepernick’s Workout in Atlanta
After not being identified as one of the first 11 teams accepting the NFL's invitation to free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s workout, it appears the Seahawks will be represented in Atlanta on Saturday after all.
In what remains a very shocking and bizarre situation coming from the league office, ESPN reporter Brady Henderson indicated Seattle will be one of the many teams to witness Kaepernick in action at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
As of right now, 24 of the 32 teams in the league have publicly stated that they will be attending Kaepernick’s showcase on Saturday, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Ironically, the final time the now 32-year old Kaepernick played on an NFL field was against Seattle back on Jan. 1, 2017 when the Seahawks defeated the 49ers 25-23. Seattle was also one of the few teams linked to him over the past few years, visiting with him in May 2017 and scheduling a workout in April 2018.
On both occasions, Seattle was in the market for a backup quarterback to play behind Russell Wilson. But after the player was reportedly non-committal about whether he'd continue to kneel during the national anthem, the organization chose to postpone his workout and never rescheduled it, choosing to stick with Austin Davis and eventually trade for Brett Hundley.
While it remains puzzling as to why general manager John Schneider and the Seahawks chose against signing Kaepernick, coach Pete Carroll’s comments back in 2017 didn’t do much to shut down the rumors of collusion against the controversial quarterback.
"Colin has been a fantastic football player and he's going to continue to be. At this time, we didn't do anything with it, but we know where he is and who he is, and we had a chance to understand him much more so," Carroll said. "He's a starter in this league. We have a starter, but he's a starter in this league and I can't imagine that somebody won't give him a chance to play."
While Carroll continued on to state that the “doors are always open to opportunities” the Seahawks obviously haven’t lived up to that remark until now.
It's unclear if Seattle has any legitimate interest in Kaepernick at this time, but it wouldn’t be the first time the franchise has taken on a player who has been passed on by other teams in the league because of off-field issues, which shouldn’t even be applicable to the quarterback's situation anyway.
Earlier this season, the Seahawks were reportedly interested in acquiring disgraced former Steelers receiver Antonio Brown, who has yet to be signed as the league investigates multiple accusations of sexual assault against him.
Two weeks ago, Seattle was also the lone team to put in a waiver claim on receiver Josh Gordon, who has been disciplined multiple times by the league for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. The Seahawks clearly have a history of taking a chance on talented players despite the lack interest from other teams.
With backup quarterback Geno Smith already on the roster, Seattle likely won’t be offering a contract to Kaepernick unless he can prove himself more capable of winning coin tosses. But in all seriousness, there’s no debating the fact he should receive a offer from one of the many teams in attendance this weekend.
Though the six-year pro hasn’t played in a game since the 2016 season, Kaepernick could help a team in at least a backup role, if not re-emerge as starting quarterback option again for one of the 32 teams in the league. Whether he actually gets another shot or not remains to be seen and the timing of this charade certainly doesn't help his cause.
