Shad Khan Said He Would Be Open to Signing Colin Kaepernick, Jacksonville Jaguars Should End The Madness
Colin Kaepernick remains a free agent despite a legion of awful quarterbacks populating NFL rosters. Is Kaepernick an elite signal-caller who could lead a team to a title this year? No. But he’s sure as heck better than whatever the Jacksonville Jaguars are trotting out under center.
Thursday night the Jaguars lost to the Carolina Panthers 24-23 in their third preseason game. The game was notable because Jags head coach Doug Marrone opted to start Chad Henne at quarterback, not Blake Bortles. When the final whistle sounded, the only thing we got was further evidence neither guy should be starting in the NFL.
Henne finished the game 8-of-14 for 73 yards, with no touchdowns and no interceptions. Bortles was 12-of-16 for 125 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. Neither performance inspired any faith in their abilities.
Bortles made safe throws against a second-team defense and the interception he threw was horrendous. Meanwhile, Henne led the team on two scoring drives in five possessions and was sacked three times.
Before the game, owner Shad Khan made statements that he would be open to signing Colin Kaepernick.
Just saw Jags owner Shad Khan. Asked him if his football people recommended signing Kaepernick, would he be OK w/ it. Answer: "Absolutely."
— Mike Dempsey (@md_1010xl) August 24, 2017
Mr. Khan stated that while he would not have done what CK did, he respected his right as an American to express himself.
— Mike Dempsey (@md_1010xl) August 24, 2017
Mr. Khan reiterated that he was open to anything his football people sugggested to make the Jaguars better.
— Mike Dempsey (@md_1010xl) August 24, 2017
This is notable because Khan was one of the owners who donated $1 million to Donald Trump’s inauguration. Part of the thinking of those that do not view Jacksonville as an option was because Khan might not support the move.
He’s now put the ball in Tom Coughlin and Doug Marrone’s hands with those comments.
It’s clear now that the Jaguars don’t have an NFL-level starter on their roster, while Kaepernick sits unsigned. Despite his flaws (and he certainly has them), if the Jaguars want to win, Kaepernick would give them a much better chance than the guys they have now.
It has been pointed out many times, but in 2016, Kaepernick was actually a decent NFL quarterback. In 12 games he completed 59.2 percent of his passes for 2,241 yards. He averaged 6.77 yards per attempt and posted 16 touchdowns against four interceptions. He also rushed for 468 yards and two scores. His passer rating (90.7) ranked 17th of the 30 quarterbacks who qualified, while his Total QBR (55.2) ranked 23rd.
Is Kaepernick going to come in and elevate the Jaguars to a championship contender? No. But if Jacksonville wants to actually win some games, the team would be far better off with Kaepernick than Bortles or Henne. We all know that to be true.