I heard two guys on sports radio yesterday “debating” the issue of which NFL team should sign Colin Kaepernick. One side of the argument went along the lines that he should work to get to a team that has no top-shelf starting QB and work to achieve that status with that team. The other side of the argument was that he should sign – knowingly as the backup QB – with the Seattle Seahawks. The proponent of the “Colin-to-Seattle” thinking said that all of this made sense for the Seahawks as well as for Kaepernick because the Seahawks have no experienced backup to Russell Wilson.
I could not think of who the backup to Wilson is as I was driving along yesterday so when I got home and here is what I found on the Seahawks’ roster/depth chart:
- On the Seahawks depth chart, the backup QB is Trevone Boykin.
- On the roster, the other QB listed is Jake Heaps.
Many people think the Seahawks are serious playoff contenders in the NFC West but I do have to admit that they do not have much experience behind Russell Wilson in the event he suffers an injury. Boykin’s career shows him playing in 5 games; he is 13 for 18 passing with 1 TD and 1 INT. If Jake Heaps has played at all in the NFL, I cannot find a record of that. So. Maybe the “Colin-to-Seattle” suggestion makes sense.
[Aside: In checking for Trevone Boykin’s stats, I also discovered that he was arrested in March 2017 for a possible violation of his parole which came as a result of a run-in with the law in June 2016. The Seahawks may be thinner than they look at QB.]
Notwithstanding the logic of that suggestion, I suspect that Colin Kaepernick would rather be able to earn the starting QB slot on a team and that is not going to happen in Seattle without an injury to Russell Wilson. There are indeed “QB-deficient” teams in the NFL where he could possibly work his way to the top of the heap through training camp such as:
- Chicago Bears
- Cleveland Browns
- Houston Texans
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- LA Rams
- Minnesota Vikings
- NY Jets
[Aside: I did not include the SF 49ers on this list even though they have “QB-deficiencies” because I suspect that the Niners do not want Kaepernick and Kaepernick does not want the Niners.]
If I were Colin Kaepernick – or his agent – I would be trying to strike a deal with one of those teams instead of the Seahawks. Then again, I am not Colin Kaepernick nor am I his agent…
A report at ESPN.com last week said that Adidas is getting out of the business of selling golf equipment. Adidas makes Taylor Made equipment in addition to Adams Golf and Ashworth; Adidas is selling all of that to a private equity firm for $425M. That sounds like a lot of money but according to the report, that is a reflection of a serious decline in the market for golf equipment. According to the report, Adidas sold $1.7B worth of “golf stuff” in 2012; last year, sales were down to $500M. That is a 70% decline in a 5 year stretch.
Apparently, the problem is not limited to Adidas. Nike has also gotten out of the golf business. I think the decline in the sales of golf equipment has something to do with the decline in interest in the Pro Tour. After a decade or so when the folks who cover golf and the folks who promote golf did nothing beyond pushing Tiger Woods as the “face-of-the-game”, they are now struggling to make a connection with a wide audience now that Tiger Woods is a mere after-thought on the Pro Tour. I do not think that Woods’ receding into the background is the sole cause of the market softness here; in fact, it is probably only an ancillary factor. However, as the business of golf sought to climb out from under the weight of the 2008 economic financial collapse, the lack of a figure to regenerate interest in what is an expensive hobby was a problem for the industry.
Adidas has been in the golf equipment business since 1997. For the 3 brands that sold to the private equity firm, Adidas paid a total of $1.54B to acquire them and now they only brought back $425M.
Just in case you are in the Tampa Bay area, let me fill you in on a dietary hazard at the Tampa Bay Rays stadium. If you are there, you need to be wary of ordering the 4-pound burger that is on sale. It is really a simple deal. This is 4 pounds of ground meat on a “bun”; you add the condiments of your choice; it comes with 1 pound of fries. If you eat the entire thing by yourself in 30 minutes or less here is what you get:
- Two tickets to another Rays’ game of your choosing
- A T-shirt
- And most likely a case of heartburn that would make it into the Guinness Book of Records.
Finally, here is an item from Dwight Perry in the Seattle Times:
“Ten tons of Kraft and Velveeta cheese were destroyed when the brakes of the semi hauling it caught fire near West Allis, Wis.
“So, in addition to Title Town USA, Cheeseheads can now lay claim to the Fondue Capital of the World.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………
Kap to Seattle has created a very minor buzz around the Bay Area. One thing in Kap’s favor is that he and Wilson play similar styles for mobility and improvisation. I’m pretty sure the teams on your list do not play such a style and so would have to adjust the playbook to varying degrees to accommodate him. The problem is that Kap’s play in the last couple of years doesn’t justify taking that risk.
rugger9:
My only point is that Colin Kaepernick is a more viable safety net for a playoff contender (Seahawks) than the guys on their roster as of the moment.
Because Kap defied Jed, there is no way he returns to the Niners, IMHO.
rugger9:
I doubt the Niners want him back and I doubt that Kaepernick wants to return to the Niners.
Kap to Seattle will be a disaster. We already have some unique personalities here and Kap here in a backup role will be like throwing gasoline on a campfire.
Heaps runs the scout team at practice. Nice kid, played highschool here locally and won state a few times, played college at BYU, Kansas and Miami where he played well but kept losing his starting job and transferring to a different school. Probably a kid who ends up coaching somewhere because he supposedly has a off the chart football IQ.
We are in a bad spot if Wilson ever gets hurt. We saw that last year when his knee and ankle got tweaked and his mobility was affected. Hawks need home field advantage in playoffs to go all the way.
Joew:
I take your point that Kaepernick might not be a good fit with the other personalities on the team. I also think that if Russell Wilson had to take 3 or 4 games off to recoup from an injury, the team would probably be in “safer hands” with Kaepernick than they would with either Boykin or Heaps.
I do not think the Seahawks are going to sign him – – but it was interesting as something to contemplate for a moment.