Now that the 49ers want nothing to do with him, it appears that the liberal sports media sympathizes with quarterback Colin Kaepernick and advocates that some NFL team should sign him to a new contract.
Mike Florio writes at NBC Sports PFT that although Kaepernick may not, as Ron Jaworski once claimed, have the potential to “become one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time,” he deserves a chance “to show what he can still do.”
Florio agrees with Doug Lesmerises of the Cleveland Plain Dealer that the Cleveland Browns should give the QB, who refused to stand for the National Anthem last season, a chance. The blame lies with Browns owner Jimmy Haslam, Florio argues, because he is a Republican with ties to the Jeb Bush for president campaign and he is the brother of Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, without considering that management might be considering their fan base or that Kaepernick just isn’t that good.
Florio doesn’t seem to remember the Isaiah Crowell ordeal. The Cleveland Browns running back posted an Instagram pic last year of a cop getting murdered by a terrorist and appeared to “advocate the knifing of police officers,” which caused the Cleveland Police Union president to actually threaten to pull security from Browns games. Crowell eventually apologized. Kaepernick might be an especially bad fit in a town already weary of his anti-cop stance.
Moreover, Florio criticizes New York Jets Owner Woody Johnson for having the same “mindset” as Haslam. Johnson, appointed by President Trump as Ambassador to the United Kingdom, would never employ Kaepernick. That’s because, despite their current search for a quarterback, his new boss already voiced disdain for Kaepernick’s lack of respect for the American Flag and the nation’s police officers. Trump said of Kaepernick’s antics, “Maybe he should find a country that works better for him.”
Florio seems incredulous, saying, “The fact that no one has even brought him in for a visit suggests that something more than football is influencing the process.”
Why is it that Florio only points the finger at conservative owners for denying Kaepernick a place on the roster? Why not go after Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, who contributed handsomely to the Hillary Clinton campaign? Yet, instead of signing Kaepernick, Lurie re-signs the white Nick Foles. Why isn’t he under scrutiny?
The Rooneys own the Steelers, and one of them served as Obama’s ambassador to Ireland. With Ben Roethlisberger musing about retirement, why haven’t they brought Kaepernick in yet, if only for a look?
As Hamlet’s Marcellus might have said, “Something is rotten in the land of sports media.”
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