Free-Agent Quarterback Colin Kaepernick, 34, Spotted Working Out With Las Vegas Raiders

NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick hasn’t played a professional game since 2016, following protesting racial inequality and police brutality in the United States. After the 34-year-old was spotted working out with the Las Vegas Raiders, rumors of his return to the field are emerging. 

A quarterback’s role during NFL workouts is essential, as they demonstrate team-specific routines that are meant to improve offensive challenges. Kaepernick visited the Seattle Seahawks as a free agent in 2017, but his last visit with a team was in 2019. Due to his inactivity in the league, his reintroduction to a team practice is highly eyebrow-raising. According to ESPN, the workout was “positive” and earlier this year, Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis spoke very high of the free-agent quarterback. 

Davis shared that Kaepernick, “deserves every chance in the world to become a quarterback in the National Football League” and even admitted, “If our coaches and general manager want to bring him in or want him to be the quarterback on this team, I would welcome him with open arms.”

However, the Raiders seem content with their quarterback roster. They have not communicated any plans to replace their starting player Dereck Carr and the team also holds Jarrett Stidham, Nick Mullens, and Chase Garbers as potential backups. 

Colin Kaepernick feels prepared to return to the NFL

Yet, Kaepernick communicated that he has no problem not starting and only wants to put his foot back in the door. “Yeah. I know I have to find my way back in,” he explained. 

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Confident in his ability to make his way up through the ranks, Kaepernick continued, “So, yeah, if I have to come in as a backup that’s fine, but that’s not where I’m staying. And when I prove that I’m a starter, I want to be able to step on the field as such. I just need that opportunity to walk through the door.”

Weighing in on the well-publicized workout, former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum gave his thoughts on the matter. In a bold statement, he relayed that if he were responsible for the Raiders’ roster, Kaepernick would have a spot on the team. 

“I would’ve signed him, not just worked him out, I would’ve signed him,” he said during an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up. “It tells me that they have concerns about Nick Mullens and Jarrett Stidham as a backup and, by signing him now, it gives them about six weeks to get to know the playbook, get back into the NFL routine so when they hit training camp, he’s ready to go.”