Kaepernick to the Patriots, Replace Tom Brady: Bold Prediction
Speaking on CNN with Ana Cabrera Saturday evening, high profile attorney Mark Geragos made a bold prediction that his client Colin Kaepernick would be playing in New England for the Patriots.
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"I wouldn't be surprised if Bob Kraft made a move," Geragos said of the Patriots owner.
New England is a 7/1 co-favorite along with the Kansas City Chiefs to win the 2020 Super Bowl but pulling the trigger on Kaepernick is likely aimed at replacing aging quarterback Tom Brady over the next two years.
Brady will be 42 heading into the 2019 regular season. The oldest player to ever start as a quarterback in the NFL was Steven Leroy "Steve" DeBerg, 45. Do the math.
This past week, the NFL settled collusion cases brought by Colin Kaepernick and another player, Eric Reid.
It all started when, during a 49ers third preseason game of the 2016 season, Kaepernick was noticed sitting down during the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" as opposed to the tradition of standing.
"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," he stated during a postgame interview. "To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder", referencing a series of African-American deaths caused by law enforcement that led to the Black Lives Matter movement and adding that he would continue to protest until he feels like "[the American flag] represents what it's supposed to represent".
He began taking a knee after retired Army Green Beret and NFL player Nate Boyer suggested he do so as a compromise.
“I suggested him taking a knee instead of sitting even though I wanted him to stand, and he wanted to sit," Boyer told NPR at the time. "And it was, like, this compromise that we sort of came to. And that's where the kneeling began.”
After his national anthem protests, Kaepernick pledged to donate one million dollars to "organizations working in oppressed communities". A number of other NFL players began taking knees resulting in more widespread protests during the 2017-2018 season.
Kaepernick reportedly opted out of his contract with the 49ers two years ago, though Geragos claimed this wasn't the case. He hasn't played in the league since, despiting guiding San Francisco into the Super Bowl.
"He's one of only a small group of seven or eight who have played in the Super Bowl recently when you count Tom Brady who's played in nearly all of them," Geragos said Saturday evening.
The league and Kaepernick’s lawyer sent out statements Friday saying that “the parties have decided to resolve the pending grievances” and that a confidentiality agreement would prevent either side from commenting further.
It remains unclear if the NFL admitted wrongdoing or how much money Reid, Kaepernick or others may have received.
“For the past several months, counsel for Mr. Kaepernick and Mr. Reid have engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives of the NFL,” the league statement said. “As a result of those discussions, the parties have decided to resolve the pending grievances. The resolution of this matter is subject to a confidentiality agreement so there will be no further comment by any party.”
On the surface, the Patriots might appear to be the last team that would embrace the likes of a Colin Kaepernick. Kraft and Brady both maintain an amicable relationship with Donald Trump. The U.S. President has been critical of players taking a knee during the National Anthem.
Dylan Gwynn of Brietbart News writes that the Patriots would actually be a perfect fit for Kaepernick.
New England is obviously an intensely liberal region, they have tremendous political capital built up over the course of dominating the league over the last 20 years to offset any fan backlash, and, despite his friendship with President Trump, Patriots Owner Robert Kraft is no conservative and has spoken out in support of social justice causes.
Indeed, a number of Patriots players took the knee during the 2017 NFL season. Brady even commended them for doing so.
"I think there were a lot of really good healthy conversations coming out of it in our locker room...," Brady said. "[In his playing career] I've been with guys from all different parts of the country. Every color, race, belief. I respect why people are doing what they're doing. They're doing it for different reasons and that's OK. We had meetings after practice talking about how we wanted to deal with that particular situation. We chose to lock arms and we put arms around each other. We support what people are going through. Everybody comes from something different...You better have that respect for everybody. That's what sports are about."
Brady has also expressed support for Kaepernick.
"I've always watched him and admired him, the way that he's played he was a great young quarterback," Brady told Norah O'Donnell back in September 2017. "He came to our stadium and beat us and took his team to the Super Bowl. He accomplished a lot in the pros as a player. And he's certainly qualified and I hope he gets a shot."
Heading into this week we should see books offering odds on where Kaepernick will end up.
The Patriots will likely be listed among the favorites, but so too will the Carolina Panthers.
Carolina head coach Ron Rivera suggested on First Take Friday he wouldn’t rule out adding another top quarterback to compete for Newton’s job.
"I don't disagree with that because if there is one thing that he likes it's to be challenged. Bringing in another quarterback, bringing in somebody to compete with him most certainly does motivate him," Rivera said of Newton, via Max Henson of the team's official website. "But more so than anything else, the naysayers, those whispers, those are motivating enough for him."
Geragos, who said he spoke to Kaepernick earlier in the day, predicted Carolina could also make a move for his client.
- Alejandro Botticelli, Gambling911.com
