An agent of Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, has reportedly reached out to three teams amid a slew of high-profile quarterback injuries.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Nick Foles were injured during the first two games of the season. Roethlisberger is expected to be out for the rest of the season and Brees is expected to miss a number of games.
Meanwhile, there are reports that Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton may be out with a foot injury, and New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold is expected to miss a number of games due to mononucleosis, according to reports.
CBS Sports reported that three teams were contacted by the agent. It’s not clear what teams those are.
Source close to @Kaepernick7 in light of all the QB injuries: “Colin is literally in the best shape of his life. He’s been working out 5 days a week at 5 am for 3 years. He wants to play and his agent has been contacting teams in need of a QB.”
— Chris Williamson (@CWilliamson44) September 17, 2019
A SportsNet New York reporter, Chris Williamson, also wrote that Kaepernick’s agent has reached out to several unnamed teams.
“Colin is literally in the best shape of his life. He’s been working out 5 days a week at 5 am for 3 years. He wants to play and his agent has been contacting teams in need of a QB,” a source told him.
ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith also said that his agent reached out to the Jets, Saints, and Steelers.
“I am being told that he has contacted—Colin Kaepernick’s agent and others—have contacted the Pittsburgh Steelers,” Smith said. “Essentially, they’re not interested. They’ve contacted the Jets, no word on them yet. They’ve contacted the Saints. They didn’t get their phone calls returned.”
Kaepernick, when he played for the 49ers, is best known for kneeling during the playing of the national anthem before games in 2016. He said that it’s to protest police brutality, but the move drew significant ire from fans and politicians, including President Donald Trump.
He had 58 starts during his six-year career in San Francisco, leading his team to multiple playoff berths and a 2013 Super Bowl loss against the Baltimore Ravens, according to ESPN.
But in the 2015 season, Kaepernick was benched by former coach Jim Tomsula in favor of backup Blaine Gabbert due to poor play. After that, it was announced that he would miss the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury and surgery.
The next year, San Francisco coach Chip Kelly benched Kaepernick again in favor of Gabbert during a loss to the Chicago Bears after he completed only five passes for 4 yards.
In March 2017, he officially opted out of his contract with the 49ers and became a free agent. He hasn’t played a snap since the 2016-2017 season.
Last year, Kaepernick and former teammate Eric Reid reached a confidential settlement with the NFL after alleging that the league tried to prevent him from playing.
“For the past several months, counsel for Mr. Kaepernick and Mr. Reid have engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives of the NFL,” read the joint statement issued at the time by lawyer Mark Geragos. “As a result of those discussions, the parties have decided to resolve the pending grievances. The resolution of this matter is subject to a confidentiality agreement so there will be no further comment by any party.”
