With Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford missing yet another start due to a back injury, would signing someone like Colin Kaepernick makes sense?
Earlier this week, the NFL announced that former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick would be having a pro day-style workout on Saturday in Atlanta. According to ESPN.com, 24 NFL teams, including the Detroit Lions will be in attendance.
It’s been almost three years since Kaepernick has played in an NFL game, so team representatives will look for the obvious such as conditioning, leg speed, arm strength, and so on. It’s not likely he will be in game shape, and can’t be expected to pick up where he left off.
But every team knows what Kaepernick was able to do. He led the San Francisco 49ers to the NFC Championship game in both 2012 and 2013, so his job skills are unquestionable. But, just like any newly signed quarterback, he must learn a new system and continue conditioning to be able to finish a game.
Therefore, even under the best possible scenario, it could be three weeks or more before Kaepernick would be ready to take the field. That said, these physical and knowledge skills will not be the most important issue.
Every team is very sensitive to the locker room environment. Not only is Kaepernick known to be outspoken, he will be a factor whether he plays or not. Politics aside, he has been a controversial figure that has spurred both positive and negative emotions from many sides both with players and with the fans.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford has been a dependable starter for a long time. His streak of 136 consecutive games has led to a comforting assumption that he will play every game and the Lions need to build around him. It’s a sentiment that was blown apart last Sunday when Stafford finally had to sit out his first game since 2012.
During that time, the Lions have not had a backup on the roster that anyone could honestly believe that could carry the team to the postseason. With his current bout of injuries and now in his 11th year, it’s time to come to terms with Stafford’s fragility. A backup passer that can do more than just wear a headset and hold a clipboard must be considered.
Should it be Kaepernick? If he’s taken good care of himself he certainly has proven his ability. Would he be an unnecessary distraction?
Lions general manager Bob Quinn has stayed away from players that may divert the focus from simply winning the next game. He was supposed to bring “The Patriot Way” to Detroit, but head coach Bill Belichick has brought many controversial figures to New England, most recently wide receivers Josh Gordon and Antonio Brown.
Good starting quarterbacks are difficult to find merely as a backup, much less those that don’t have good passers to begin with. Do the Lions develop Jeff Driskel and hope that he can one day fill that role?
Does the team wait till next year and use a top draft selection to roll the dice with a top college quarterback? Or, if it turns out that Kaepernick is evaluated favorably, should the Lions try to sign him in and ease him into offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell’s system as insurance for Stafford?
Driskel may be the answer. Against the Chicago Bears in Week 10, he really didn’t look bad at all given the circumstances, completing 27 of his 46 passes for 269 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He also ran the ball five times for 37 yards.
But Driskel is still a long shot from being a franchise passer. As far as the draft, the Lions’ pass rush is horrible and must be the priority.
When Detroit’s defense gives an NFL quarterback as much time as they did Bears’ passer Mitchell Trubisky last weekend, they can make anyone look like the Patriots’ Tom Brady. Defenders that can pressure the quarterback must be the priority for the Lions in next year’s draft.
Bob Quinn doesn’t have much time left to make this Detroit Lions’ team a winner. If Quinn is still around by the end of 2020, he’ll have had four years on the job. And, so far, this team has regressed. Patience must be wearing thin on Lions’ ownership. It certainly is with the fans. So, gambling on someone like Colin Kaepernick may very well be worth the risk.