Colin Kaepernick will be in Atlanta on Saturday for a private workout for all 32 NFL teams. This could mean Kaepernick, who has been out of the league since the end of the 2016 season, could make his return by the end of 2019 or the start of 2020. According to Stephen A. Smith of ESPN, two NFL teams are interested in signing him. Smith did not reveal the names of the two teams, but he did say that nearly 10 to 15 owners believe Kaepernick should be on an NFL roster.
“There’s two teams that were definitively interested in him that called the league office about him, that’s No. 1,” Smith said on the ESPN show First Take. “No. 2, I’m hearing there’s at least 10 owners, if not more, that want nothing to do with him. But they’re divided because there’s about 10 to 15 who do believe he should be back in the league – which is why the league religiously stands up and states ‘we have not banished him from the league, teams have a right to bring him on. We haven’t prohibited them from bringing him on board.’”
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Based on what we have recently seen in the NFL, the two teams that are reportedly interested in Kaepernick could be teams who aren’t in need of a quarterback. And while Kaepernick won’t get a list of executives who will attend the workout ahead of time, teams such as the Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons announced they will see Kaepernick in action.
With only seven weeks left in the 2019 regular season, teams are likely evaluating Kaepernick for 2020. There are a few star quarterbacks who will be free agents after the 2019 season including Drew Brees, Philip Rivers and even Tom Brady. While Kaepernick hasn’t played in the league in three years, he could compete for a starting position if he does impress the team reps at the workout.
When Kaepernick was a member of the San Francisco 49ers from 2011-2016 he was never named to the Pro Bowl, but he helped the team reach the Super Bowl during the 2012 season, throwing for 798 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions while rushing for 264 yards and three touchdowns in three touchdowns in three playoff games.
