Should the Patriots sign Colin Kaepernick?

Would you be in favor of the Patriots signing Colin Kaepernick?

I asked that question on Twitter on Tuesday morning. I set up a poll to run for just over 24 hours with two choices: ‘Yes' and ‘No.' Invoking the name Kaepernick on any social media platform will elicit a series of responses so I wasn't surprise to see a thread of people commenting, debating or insulting one another.

Honest [...]

Would you be in favor of the Patriots signing Colin Kaepernick?

I asked that question on Twitter on Tuesday morning. I set up a poll to run for just over 24 hours with two choices: ‘Yes' and ‘No.' Invoking the name Kaepernick on any social media platform will elicit a series of responses so I wasn't surprise to see a thread of people commenting, debating or insulting one another.

Honest question: Would you be in favor of the Patriots bringing in Colin Kaepernick to compete at quarterback this summer?

— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) June 2, 2020

Over the course of the last week, following the tragic death of George Floyd, Kaepernick's name is in the news again. In 2016, the San Francisco 49ers quarterback took a knee to protest social injustice during the National Anthem. The peaceful protest was polarizing throughout the year. That 2016 season also happened to be Kaepernick's last in the NFL and it wasn't a coincidence.

Last week, Joe Lockhart, who worked in the NFL as the president of communications and public affairs from 2016 to 2018, wrote a CNN.com editorial titled, ‘Now is the moment to sign Colin Kaepernick.' There he writes, “No teams wanted to sign a player -- even one as talented as Kaepernick -- whom they saw as controversial, and, therefore, bad for business.”

In six seasons, Kaepernick started 58 of 69 games with a record of 28-30. In 2013 and 2014, he landed at No. 81 in the NFL's Top 100 players list. In his final season, in 11 starts, he threw for 2,241 yards to go with 16 touchdowns and four interceptions. Was Kaepernick an All-Pro? No. Was he good enough to play in the NFL? Absolutely.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Chargers coach Anthony Lynn, who is one of four minority head coaches in the NFL, said he felt people “completely misunderstood” the message that Kaepernick tried to convey and it doesn't sit well with him that it cost the quarterback a job.

“I didn't like it. I know when you look at 32 quarterbacks in the National Football League, Colin could have been one of the 32,” Lynn said. “If not, he could have been a quality backup. For me being an African American head coach, this is tough.”

There were people who thought the quarterback was disrespecting the flag and the military during his protest. That was seen throughout the 2017 season. President Donald Trump was outspoken about the protests and his words set off widespread protests across the NFL. That included the Patriots. On Sept. 24, 2017, before their kickoff against Houston, several Patriots players took a knee during the National Anthem. Those players were met with a chorus of boos and people screaming at them to stand up.

Currently, peaceful and violent protests have erupted across the country and throughout New England. There's no simple answer to what will solve the racial problems that have plagued this country for centuries. Seeing someone like Kaepernick get another shot in the NFL could be a miniscule step in the right direction. He fought against police brutality and spoke up about social justice. Four years later, thousands of people are doing the same. And just like Kaepernick, many of them are kneeling as a symbolic gesture.

Should the Patriots try to sign Kaepernick? Would fans be in favor of the team bringing him in to compete with Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer?

Truthfully, it's highly unlikely and the pros and cons of that question are obvious.

If the Patriots believe in Stidham, then having a veteran backup who knows their system like Hoyer to help makes sense. That's what it seems like is happening. This offseason, the Patriots passed on many veteran quarterbacks (Andy Dalton, Cam Newton, Jameis Winston, etc.) in favor of Stidham/Hoyer. Why would they add one who hasn't taken a snap since 2016?

Conversely, if the Pats are going to give Hoyer a legitimate chance to beat out Stidham for the job, Kaepernick would create more competition. He's had more success as a starter in the NFL compared to Hoyer. However, a move like this would bring a media-like circus to Foxboro and the opinions would range all over the spectrum from love to hate. It would be more polarizing than when the team brought in Tim Tebow in 2013.

How do the fans feel?

In my poll on Twitter, 13,908 people voted and over 200 users commented. In the end, 52.3% said ‘yes,' they'd be in favor of adding Kaepernick to the Patriots quarterback competition while 47.7% said, ‘no.'

The comments ranged all over the spectrum: ‘He is better than what we've got on the roster now' to ‘they would lose my support as a fan.'

People were clearly divided on the issue. That won't change.

Maybe the NFL's status on the player will.

mdaniels@providencejournal.com

On Twitter: @MarkDanielsPJ