Seahawks Nix Kaepernick Visit Over Anthem Issue

He's been without a team since 2016 season
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 13, 2018 1:09 AM CDT
Updated Apr 13, 2018 4:03 AM CDT
Seahawks Nix Kaepernick Visit Over Anthem Issue
In this Dec. 3, 2017 photo, Colin Kaepernick attends the 2017 ACLU SoCal's Bill of Rights Dinner at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.   (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

The player who started the NFL anthem protests is still without a team—and it may stay that way for Colin Kaepernick unless he decides to leave on-field activism behind him. The Seattle Seahawks arranged a visit weeks ago, but it was postponed when the quarterback refused to say whether he plans to keep taking a knee during the national anthem, a source tells ESPN. The source says the Seahawks may still arrange a tryout for the former 49er, who led San Francisco to the Super Bowl after the 2012 season but has been without a team since becoming a free agent after the 2016 season. Kaepernick has accused NFL owners of conspiring to keep him out of the league.

ESPN's source says the Seattle workout was arranged the day after Kaepernick sat for a deposition in his collusion case against the NFL. A separate source tells the Seattle Times that the anthem protest wasn't the only issue that caused the trip to be postponed. The source says the Seahawks asked Kaepernick what his off-field activities, including protests, might be like in 2018, and Kaepernick said he wasn't sure. Coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider—who supported player activism last year but admitted it may have taken a toll on performances—plan to discuss the situation further and have left the door open for Kaepernick to become backup quarterback behind Russell Wilson, the source says. (More Colin Kaepernick stories.)

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