NFL 2019: Week 11

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Let's talk about Colin Kaepernick.

A couple of days ago, the NFL came out of nowhere to schedule a "Pro Day" workout for Colin Kaepernick for teams to attend.

To put it bluntly, it's an ambush move. Why?

Charles Robinson at Yahoo wrote:

First, a representative from the league called a select group of reporters last week and suggested they should be available on the following Tuesday for a worthwhile news development. The NFL wouldn’t say what it would be. Just that the reporters should be ready to share some breaking news. When the day arrived, the NFL called Kaepernick’s representatives for the first time in more than a year, instructing them that the league was willing to hold a private pro-day style workout for Kaepernick in Atlanta in four days. If he accepted, a memo would be sent to every NFL team inviting them to attend.

The league wouldn’t answer why it was suddenly making the offer. It wouldn’t say who came up with the idea. It wouldn’t say who would attend. And it wouldn’t say why the workout was roughly 96 hours away and on a Saturday when most NFL teams were preparing for a game.

But the NFL would say this: After nearly three years of waiting for this offer, Kaepernick had two hours to accept it.

Kaepernick, of course, has basically no choice but to jump on this opportunity, even though there will almost certainly be nobody of consequence from NFL teams attending the workout.

As of last night, Kaepernick had still not received a script of throws, or who he would be throwing to. Even the most inconsequential college prospect QB knows ahead of time what he's going to be asked to do.

From top to bottom, this is a bullsh*t side show, meant to give the league the ability to say, "we gave him a workout, nobody wanted him" and bury the issue once and for all.

F**k the NFL.

But what if, despite the deck stacked against him, Kaepernick shows up and throws well, and by some luck has a good interview with a team's mid-tier personnel guy that actually has the pull to make something happen?

Kaepernick may not be a top 32 quarterback, but if he's anything like he was the last time he played healthy, he absolutely is a top 80 quarterback. So what active rosters could Kaepernick legitimately be an option for?

Tampa Bay Buccaneers - If there's any team with a QB2 that Kaepernick would upgrade, it's the Buccaneers. Thanks to Blaine Gabbert going on IR, the team's QB2 is Ryan Griffin. Nobody in that QB room is guaranteed to be there next year, so bringing in someone like Kaepernick for a trial over the second half of the season makes sense. If the team moves on from Winston and looks to a QB in the draft, Kaepernick could be prepared to be the bridge QB for the rookie, and sit behind him as his QB2 once the rookie takes over.

Cincinnati Bengals - They've benched Dalton, who is going to be gone come the offseason. They're currently starting Ryan Finley, and they're carrying a UDFA as a 3rd quarterback. Kaepernick would certainly upgrade over the UDFA, and just like with the Tampa Bay scenario, he could potentially be a bridge QB and veteran backup for a top draft pick next season.

Denver Broncos - He's 6'4" and the two active QBs on the roster are not. And those two QBs have a combined NFL experience of 1 game.

Houston Texans - I'm thinking of how Baltimore has RG3 as their mini-Lamar backup QB. Kaepernick would make a much better mini-Watson than AJ McCarron could.

Detroit Lions - Matt Stafford has a hurt back, and the team is currently starting Jeff Driskel.

Seattle Seahawks - Wilson's backup is Geno Smith.

New York Jets - The team could use a veteran backup behind Sam Darnold, but they're currently down to David Fales.

Dallas Cowboys - I know, this one seems impossible. Bear with me a sec. Jerry has yet to commit the money to Dak Prescott that he wants. Negotiations seem far apart. Jerry has been here before. He was in this same situation in 2012 with Tony Romo. Jones wanted to sign Romo for less than Romo was wanting to take. What did he do? He signed Kyle Orton, a move which was widely interpreted as putting pressure on Romo. As such, Romo and Orton reportedly did not get along at all. Things eventually worked out in Romo's favor, getting the deal he wanted in 2013 and Orton out of town the next offseason. Does Jones like what Kaepernick stands for? Certainly not. Does Jones care more about that than the money Dak is trying to get out of his pocket? That's not quite as clear IMO. Not saying the odds here are great, but I think it's more than the 0% that people would assume otherwise.

Wait, is it my bedtime yet? Cause this only goes up at my bedtime.

I'd throw Pitt in that list for Kaep. Especially on a one-year deal as a Ben stop-gap.

Hey back to Thurs. threads.

Deeply impressed on how doing this incredibly short-notice and chaotic workout has made the NFL look even worst than it already had with this situation.

A lot of folks over the years have tried to connect Kaep with the Panthers, as Kaep and Newton's run/pass games are sorta similar (and Kaep has the advantage of not having a long list of broken body parts). Eric Reed is a Panther, and the new owner seems less, ah, uptight than the previous pervy owner.

I wouldn't put money on that happening. That said, a small part of me says David Tepper might blow this whole Panthers thing up and start over. So who knows?

The league wouldn’t answer why it was suddenly making the offer. It wouldn’t say who came up with the idea.

It must have been someone influential if the NFL felt the need to exhume a dead and buried topic.

The teams I picked fall into either (a) having a serious need for a QB with a pulse right now, or (b) having a need for a veteran backup and/or potential bridge starter in 2020.

I don't see the Panthers in either category. Even if the scenario of Cam being cut loose were to happen, they're 2 deep at QB with Kyle-Not-Josh and Will Grier. Maybe there's a lack of veteran experience in that pairing, but I think Allen has proven he's good enough to be a bridge starter if nothing else. And I'm not ruling Cam out, so they may well be 3 deep at QB.

I do agree that the roadblock of having a rotten human being at owner is no longer present in Carolina.

UpToIsomorphism wrote:

I'd throw Pitt in that list for Kaep. Especially on a one-year deal as a Ben stop-gap.

OK actually this is a really interesting one now if we take into account that (a) the Steelers are a legitimate wildcard contender right now, and (b) they have nothing behind Mason Rudolph. If Rudolph were to miss time again, hanging your playoff hopes on Devlin Hodges or Paxton Lynch seems negligent.

I wasn't thinking of the Steelers because I'm assuming a Roethlisberger return in 2020, with Rudolph behind him, which doesn't leave a real burning need for another QB. But as a 2019 option, that might be more viable than I first thought.

stylistically, I see him fitting best as Wilson's backup.

Kansas City loves Quarterbacks. San Francisco Quarterbacks.

One time, one of them scored a weird touchdown.

The Browns seem to have found a groove.

UpTo was on to something earlier today...

UpToIsomorphism wrote:

I'd throw Pitt in that list for Kaep. Especially on a one-year deal as a Ben stop-gap.

Edit: Fox Sports must be behind a bit if they're giving a "sneak preview" of something that premiered two weeks ago.

Pitt makes sense now also because are we certain Big Ben actually makes it back next year. He has some heavy injury mileage + turns 38 this March. Also I'm not sure if Pitt wants to go through a rebuild.

Maybe even worse though is if a team does pick him up... Why the f*ck did they need this slapped together workout.

"Eleven teams -- Arizona, Atlanta, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Miami, New England, New York Giants, New York Jets, Tampa Bay, and Washington -- have already committed to attend, and it's only Thursday. With two days remaining until the workout, we expected additional teams to commit. Former NFL head coach Hue Jackson will lead the drills, and former NFL head coach Joe Philbin will be in attendance as well. We will send video of the workout and interview to all 32 teams, including head coaches and general managers."

If the f*cking Patriots pick him up and transition from Brady to Kap and it works. f*ck f*ck f*ck.

Paleocon wrote:

stylistically, I see him fitting best as Wilson's backup.

This. SEA worked him out back in 2018 (?) but didn't sign him because they said they thought he'd be a better starter (?). I always read that to mean they didn't like his asking price for a backup.

I'd love if they signed him. Can't be any worse than any other NFL clipboard carrier.

There are just so many crap teams in football this year. Was just thinking the AFC East & North are particularly bad and they both play each other. Take out the Ravens and Patriots and the rest of the teams are 18:36

Jesus, that hit was bad. Ejection probably the right move.

Rat Boy wrote:

UpTo was on to something earlier today...

UpToIsomorphism wrote:

I'd throw Pitt in that list for Kaep. Especially on a one-year deal as a Ben stop-gap.

Edit: Fox Sports must be behind a bit if they're giving a "sneak preview" of something that premiered two weeks ago.

It’s fitting, one of my favorite players (mostly because of his social stances) hoes to the team I hate (because f*ck the Steelers).

Baker > Mason

Browns: Even when we win we do stupid sh*t.

UpToIsomorphism wrote:
Rat Boy wrote:

UpTo was on to something earlier today...

UpToIsomorphism wrote:

I'd throw Pitt in that list for Kaep. Especially on a one-year deal as a Ben stop-gap.

Edit: Fox Sports must be behind a bit if they're giving a "sneak preview" of something that premiered two weeks ago.

It’s fitting, one of my favorite players (mostly because of his social stances) hoes to the team I hate (because f*ck the Steelers).

I have an aunt who's one of the last members of my father's side of the family who still lives in the Pittsburgh suburbs which is decidedly... not Kaep's folks, if you catch my meaning. Might be why she's considering moving in her "new" (in a loose sense) boyfriend near Cleveland.

Oh... well, now that I've seen that particular clip from tonight's game, I wouldn't blame my Aunt Lorie and her beau Stan (that's his actual name) if they decided to move out of the AFC North completely.

This is has been What's Up With My Family.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/6NqFW2G.jpg)

I feel like someone needs to dub in Greedo saying "Maclunkey" during the fight.

Edit: And why was Mason Rudolph trying to remove Myles Garrett's helmet in the first place when they were tussling on the ground?

So I turned off the TNF game at half. Did I miss anything?

Rat Boy wrote:

I feel like someone needs to dub in Greedo saying "Maclunkey" during the fight.

Edit: And why was Mason Rudolph trying to remove Myles Garrett's helmet in the first place when they were tussling on the ground?

And cleats to crotch.

Doesn't matter for Myles, he's likely done for the year. Others might get suspensions though.

MilkmanDanimal wrote:

Deeply impressed on how doing this incredibly short-notice and chaotic workout has made the NFL look even worst than it already had with this situation.

Seriously, they already gave Kaep a multimillion dollar settlement and the issue was more or less dead already...there's zero upside for the NFL in this current situation. If Kaep performs well then its turns into "why the hell did you guys keep him out of the NFL so long when all these sh!tty backups are getting paid." If he doesn't perform well then its "why the eff did you force him into a no-win situation?!"

I almost feel bad for being the primary beneficiary of that sh*tshow last night. The Ravens now no longer have to worry about even an unrealistic possibility of the Steelers stealing the North title from them and no longer have to face Garrett for the rematch. Positive outcome for the Ravens, but it feels dirty somehow.

mindset.threat wrote:
MilkmanDanimal wrote:

Deeply impressed on how doing this incredibly short-notice and chaotic workout has made the NFL look even worst than it already had with this situation.

Seriously, they already gave Kaep a multimillion dollar settlement and the issue was more or less dead already...there's zero upside for the NFL in this current situation. If Kaep performs well then its turns into "why the hell did you guys keep him out of the NFL so long when all these sh!tty backups are getting paid." If he doesn't perform well then its "why the eff did you force him into a no-win situation?!"

I've heard speculation that part of Kaep's settlement might have included a workout in front of teams... that the NFL's throwing together like it's a surprise drill at 3 am.

Fark.com sports headline

Bengals game breaks out at end of Steelers-Browns game

garion333 wrote:
Rat Boy wrote:

I feel like someone needs to dub in Greedo saying "Maclunkey" during the fight.

Edit: And why was Mason Rudolph trying to remove Myles Garrett's helmet in the first place when they were tussling on the ground?

And cleats to crotch.

Doesn't matter for Myles, he's likely done for the year. Others might get suspensions though.

Looks like you're right. Garrett is suspended indefinitely -- through the end of the season and postseason at least.

Pouncey and Ogunjobi get three games each. More player fines TBA. Both teams fined $250K each.

Daaaaaayum.

Given the casualties suffered through suspension and injury, I can easily see Pittsburgh giving Cincinnati their first and possibly only victory next week.

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