Grip on Sports: Reports of the Seahawks’ flirtation with Colin Kaepernick revs up the outrage machine
A GRIP ON SPORTS • There are just two words anyone needs to utter these days to get a rise out of a sports fan: Colin Kaepernick. Read on.
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• The Seattle Seahawks are walking a thin line these days. A few of them in fact.
Their margin between success and failure has shrunk to the size of the line on a piece of grade-school writing paper. And one of the areas the Hawks need to bolster, thanks to the stupid decisions of their former backup, is the quarterback position.
Seattle is on the paper’s edge here.
The Seahawks need someone good enough to help them win if, god forbid, anything were to happen to Russell Wilson. But the backup can’t be so good he threatens the team’s relationship with Wilson, who can opt to explore free agency in the not-so-distant future.
You may recall some in the Wilson camp getting bent out of joint a bit recently when the Hawks had the temerity to scout the draft possibilities of Wyoming’s Josh Allen. Oh, the horror. But that Hawks must have a viable, experienced backup. It’s mandatory for successful teams in the modern NFL. Hence the flirtation with Kaepernick. And the news yesterday the team postponed a visit with the out-of-work quarterback.
The Hawks spoke with the former 49er starter before. But nothing came of it. Pete Carroll intimated afterward Kaepernick wanted to be a starter and that wasn’t in the cards in Seattle.
But that was then. It’s pretty clear Kaepernick wants to get back in the league and is willing to accept any role to make that happen. Except lickspittle.
You may not agree with the way he’s attempted to get his message across, the forum he’s chosen, the way he called attention to himself and disrupted your favorite sport.
Heck, you may not even agree with his message – though I’m hard-pressed to understand what is wrong with standing up (or kneeling, in this case) for equal protection for everyone under our nation’s laws – but you have to admit the guy has ideals.
And he’s willing to suffer immense scorn, retribution and consequences for those ideals.
Which seems the sort of characteristics that should be admirable to others on a professional football team.
Kaepernick also seems to be a strong fit for the Hawks skill-wise – and in the level of those skills. He’s not a better quarterback than Wilson (few are), but he’s good enough to hold down the fort if anything happens. In a lot of ways he seems like a near-perfect football fit. But there is that little protest thing.
The Hawks have been pretty accommodating of strong-willed individuals in the Carroll era, if not downright encouraging. But this offseason has the makings of a purge, what with Michael Bennett and Richard Sherman jettisoned.
Certainly one could make a strong argument their declining football skills (or, in Sherman’s case, due to injuries the possibility of his skills declining quickly) are the main reason for the change – and that’s an argument I would embrace – but they also were the most polarizing players on the roster the past two seasons.
Carroll and John Schneider have tamped down the noise this past offseason, so maybe there is room for the addition of a player with baggage. But not too much baggage.
Reports yesterday from in and out of Seattle are the Hawks postponed another meeting with Kaepernick when the quarterback wouldn’t give them assurances his anthem-kneeling days were behind him, that he was 100-percent devoted to football.
Which, in a lot of ways, is too bad. The football fit seems obvious. The locker room fit seems accommodating. The fan fit seems OK.
But the complications, the schism between the pro and con Kaepernick folks has grown so wide it may be impossible to bridge, even for a team with a history of acceptance of all views.
It should come down to the first of those criteria, football fit. If Kaepernick can help the Hawks return to the playoffs, all other concerns should be secondary. If he can’t, then find someone who can.
But we all know, no matter how we feel about Kaepernick, the decision won’t be just a football one. It’s something we can agree on.
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WSU: Football is all the rage in Pullman these days, what with spring practices going on. And all eyes are on freshman-to-be running back Max Borghi, who enrolled early to jumpstart his college career. Theo Lawson has a story on how that seems to be working well for Borghi. … Theo also has videos of interviews with Andre Dillard, Trey Tinsley, James Williams, Peyton Pelluer and Mike Leach. … Steve Gleason is up for Congress’ highest civilian honor. The news was greeted with Gleason’s usual self-deprecating sense of humor on Twitter. … Elsewhere in the Pac-12, there is a lot of change going on at Washington, with the change in outfitters, a change in basketball recruiting and an uptick in football recruiting. … Speaking of football, the spring variety is winding down all over the conference, from Washington to Arizona State to Utah to Oregon to USC. … UCLA seems to have finally found a graduate transfer quarterback. … Arizona State is going all in with its athletic director. … Basketball recruiting is always important at Arizona. So is Lute Olson. … Utah expects next year to be even better.
Gonzaga: The times (and the facilities), they are a changing at GU. The Volkar Center for Athletic Achievement was dedicated yesterday, bringing Gonzaga’s athletics up to a level formerly reserved for a minority of Power 5 schools. Jim Meehan and Kathy Plonka were at the ceremony and have the coverage, with Jim’s story and Kathy’s photos. … Jim also looks into a couple of possible transfers the Zags have reportedly spoken with, including former WSU starter Malachi Flynn. … Jill Barta may not be headed back to Montana right away to begin a career as a teacher after all. She was drafted in the third round of the WNBA draft yesterday. Jim Allen has the story. … Larry Weir’s Press Box pod looks at Killian Tillie’s return. … Bud Withers has some thoughts on Tillie’s return as well.
EWU: The Eagles will hold their first spring scrimmage today and Jim Allen will be there. He also has a story on players trying to bounce back from an injury-riddled 2017 season.
Idaho: The Vandals signed a guard from Bothell High to a Letter of Intent yesterday.
Chiefs: Spokane extended a handful of its staff members yesterday. … Everett rallied to stun Portland last night and take a 3-1 lead in their WHL playoff series.
Preps: Talk about a busy day. We can pass along roundups from baseball, soccer, softball, tennis, golf and track and field. There is also a softball notebook from Whitney Ogden. … There is a Stanford women’s basketball story from the Bay Area that centers round the Hull twins.
Mariners: The M’s are getting healthy. Gene Warnick updates how the injured players are doing in his Out of Right Field piece. … Tough decisions are coming for the M’s, especially in leftfield. Ben Gamel will be back soon. Who goes? … Dee Gordon has been doing well in centerfield.
Seahawks: With the Kaepernick news still being discussed, the Hawks signed a different quarterback this morning. One few fans have heard about. … Russell Wilson, TV star. How does that sound? … What is going on with top draft pick Malik McDowell? … As free agency winds down, the Hawks have been doing some defensive line signings.
Sounders: There are some processes in the MLS that are broken. Case in point, discipline.
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• Another weekend looms. Get your work done today and get to it. Until later …