Seahawks WR Doug Baldwin on Saturday said that he "believes NFL owners are trying to send a message by not signing" QB Colin Kaepernick following last season's anthem protest, according to Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com. Baldwin said his "original position" was he "thought that the situation last year with him taking a knee didn't have anything to do with" not being signed. However, Baldwin has changed his view, saying, "After viewing what's going on, I've got to take that back. I definitely think that the league, the owners are trying to send a message of, 'Stay in between the lines.' It's frustrating because you want to have guys who are willing to speak out about things that they believe in, whether you agree with it or not. But I think that's definitely playing a role now more so than I thought it was going to." Kapadia noted the Seahawks "remain the only team that even brought Kaepernick in for a free-agent visit" (ESPN.com, 8/5). THE MMQB's Peter King notes the Dolphins "would have considered" signing Kaepernick if they had not agreed to terms with QB Jay Cutler. However, King writes he believes the Dolphins "are happy they didn't have to go to Kaepernick." Dolphins coach Adam Gase likely "didn't want to deal with the initial sideshow that would have come with Kaepernick" (MMQB.SI.com, 8/7).
IS HE BEING BLACKBALLED? The Ft. Worth Star-Telegram's Clarence Hill Jr. called Kaepernick’s lack of employment the "biggest story in the NFL" and said there is "no question he is being blackballed." Hill, participating in a roundtable discussion with SI.com's Richard Deitsch, said, "The league has been guilty of collusion before. Why not now? There is no football reason why Kaepernick is not on a team right now. Why would other players speak on issues when they see how Kaepernick has been blackballed?" (SI.com, 8/6). In Seattle, Matt Calkins wrote when looking at "some of the quarterbacks that have been signed as backups this offseason ... it's almost certain that Kaepernick has been blackballed." Team owners are "trying to send a message" that they "don't want controversy." Calkins: "They don't want anything that will distract from the near incomparably violent product billed as wholesome entertainment." While Kaepernick is "many hashmarks short of perfect," a look around the NFL at "some criminals they employ, Kaepernick is almost Russell Wilson by comparison" (SEATTLETIMES.com, 8/6). The NATIONAL POST's Scott Stinson noted there are "at least a handful of teams with objectively worse starting quarterbacks, and a considerable number of teams -- half the league, probably -- whose backups don’t possess anything near Kaepernick’s resume" (NATIONALPOST.com, 8/4). But in Pittsburgh, Paul Zeise wrote the idea that Kaepernick has been blackballed from the NFL is "flat-out stupid." Zeise: "It’s the ultimate example of trying to create a victim and a conspiracy that doesn’t exist." Kapernick at this point in his career is a "backup quarterback candidate" who is "viewed as more trouble than he’s worth" (POST-GAZETTE.com, 8/4).
LOOKING FOR A SUPPORT GROUP: NBCSPORTSBAYAREA.com's Monte Poole wrote the NFL "needs a team owner with enough vision to see what’s coming in the world beyond football, understand its importance, and the backbone to act in the interest of the greater good." Poole: "The NFL needs Al Davis. Another Al Davis." Kaepernick needs an owner with "enough independence to reject the league’s dogma, capable of considering his ability to play quarterback but also admiring his courage to protest the inequality we all see but only some acknowledge" (NBCSPORTSBAYAREA.com, 8/4). In N.Y., Mike Lupica wrote what is happening to Kaepernick is an "ongoing shame." Owners think Kaepernick is "bad for business," but really they "look like cowards, whether you think that Kaepernick was brave last season or not" (NYDAILYNEWS.com, 8/6).
DIFFERENT IN THE NBA: In N.Y., Fran Kilinski noted Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban last Thursday took a "jab at NFL executives" over Kaepernick's standing. Cuban said, “I’m glad the NBA doesn’t have a politician litmus test for our players. ... I’d like to think we encourage our players to exercise their constitutional rights." ESPN NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy added, "Everything starts from the top. Commissioner [Adam] Silver embraces all kinds of different ways of thinking" (NYDAILYNEWS.com, 8/6). ESPN's Pablo Torre said the NBA is "far more of a progressive, enlightened society than the NFL is." A lot of that is because NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, when compared to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, "looks like freaking Aristotle." The NBA “is a business” and Silver “is not out here doing things to sacrifice money." Torre: "He is really, really good at the specific act of threading the needle between principle and business" (“PTI,” ESPN, 8/4).