Colin Kaepernick should be back in NFL if league is supporting players' push to end racism, ex-teammate says

Colin Kaepernick received some support from a former teammate in his journey to get back into the NFL after a nearly four-year absence from the league.

Michael Thomas, a defensive back who was Kaepernick’s teammate briefly in 2012, wrote a column for “Football Morning in America” about why the quarterback should be back in the NFL.

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He wrote that while it wasn’t up to him to come up with a path for Kaepernick, the only way for the NFL to show it is serious about supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and the Black community is for Kaepernick to get a second shot.

“When I initially spoke with Peter King about writing this column, he wanted to know if I might propose a creative solution to make that job happen for Kap. I said no. The NFL created this problem. The NFL has to solve it. It’s not my job to do that,” Thomas wrote.

“If the league really feels like it’s going to back the players when it comes to ending racism, Colin should have a job. That’s the only way that the Black community and the players are going to truly believe the NFL is serious about what they say. Otherwise, people will always reference what you did to your own. You have to look in the mirror and clean your own house first.”

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Thomas said he knows how good Kaepernick is because he’s played against him — specifically citing Kaepernick’s 2016 performance against the Miami Dolphins.

“Like I said, I’ve played against Colin, and he’s a winning quarterback. He wasn’t winning the last time we faced each other, but he’s proven he can compete, and he’s taken his team to the Super Bowl. People love to talk about how long Colin has been out the game, how hard it might be for him to get back to that NFL level. But I know he’s been working and staying in shape. That’s different than actually playing, and I don’t know if his first role when he comes back will be the starting quarterback for a team. But I know for a fact that of all the backup quarterbacks on a roster right now, he’d be one of the best, if not the best. And probably better than some of the second-tier starters.”

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Kaepernick has not played in the league since 2016, when he started his protest by kneeling during the national anthem. After the season was over, he opted out of his contract and has yet to be signed. He filed a grievance against the league accusing owners of purposely keeping him out of the game but that was later dropped. He hosted his own workout last year after spurning the NFL’s workout last minute.