The 2019 NFL season has been plagued by injuries, with the majority of them affecting starting quarterbacks. Drew Brees is on the sideline; Ben Roethlisberger is out for the season; and Cam Newton has been gone for weeks. Despite the fact that numerous backups have been showing their stuff on the field, Colin Kaepernick is still without a job, and it doesn’t appear as if any of the 32 NFL teams are interested in giving him one.
It has been a very weird season up to this point, and it’s less than two months old. Not only have backup quarterbacks taken over for injured starters, but some have landed a starting job due to the inconsistency of the man labeled to lead the team at the start of 2019.
Here is what has happened in the NFL through the first five weeks of the season:
- Indianapolis Colts : Andrew Luck retired, Jacoby Brissett takes over
- New Orleans Saints : Drew Brees injured thumb, Teddy Bridgewater takes over
- Carolina Panthers : Cam Newton injures foot, Kyle Allen takes over
- Pittsburgh Steelers : Ben Roethlisberger injures shoulder, Mason Rudolph takes over; Rudolph injured, Delvin Hodges takes over
- New York Giants : Eli Manning benched, Daniel Jones takes over
- Jacksonville Jaguars : Nick Foles injured, Gardner Minshew II takes over
- New York Jets : Sam Darnold injured, Trevor Siemian takes over; Siemian injured, Luke Felk takes over
- Washington Redskins : Case Keenum and Colt McCoy go back-and-forth with injuries, Dwayne Haskins plays sometimes
- Miami Dolphins : Ryan Fitzpatrick benched, Josh Rosen takes over
- Chicago Bears : Mitch Trubisky injured, Chase Daniel takes over
All of those changes have already occurred in this NFL season, and backup quarterbacks have been called on. As reported by ESPN , representatives for Colin Kaepernick have reached out to all 32 teams in the league and they have received either very little response or none at all.
“There have been so many false narratives in the media regarding Colin, we believe it’s important to set the record straight, again.” Please read this!! Don’t believe the lies being told about my brother . @Kaepernick7 pic.twitter.com/n7J384bT96
— Eric Reid (@E_Reid35) October 10, 2019
Kaepernick’s representatives state that he has not demanded a specific salary of any kind and that he still has a desire to play in the NFL. A statement released by his reps says that this situation is unlike any that has come about in the last three decades.
“Not a single team has brought Colin in for a workout. Seattle brought Colin in for a visit but did not work him out…. No other NFL team has interviewed or worked out Colin in the past three seasons, despite other false statements to the media to the contrary.
“In 25 years, I have never seen anything like it.”
Colin Kaepernick will turn 32-years-old at the beginning of November, but he has already been out of the league since 2016. The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback reached a settlement with the NFL over the alleged collusion to keep him unsigned, but he still wants to play football.
He’s continued working out and staying in shape in case a team ever calls him for a workout, but there just hasn’t been anyone that has picked up the phone.