28.03.2024

Former Titans GM on Avoiding Colin Kaepernick Hire: ‘Don’t Want This Circus’

Floyd Reese, the general manager of the Tennessee Titans from 1994 until 2006, offered three reasons why he believes the franchise decided to sign Brandon Weeden instead of Colin Kaepernick this week to be their backup quarterback – a move that angered many NFL fans.

The first, Reese argues, is that Kaepernick doesn’t fit the scheme. Whereas someone like Marcus Mariota moves to throw, Reese said, Kaepernick is most comfortable “moving to run.” Secondly, since Kaepernick isn’t a “pocket passer,” Reese explained, it will be easier for the Titans to integrate Weeden, who knows he has to “conform exactly to whatever it is they want.” With Kaepernick, Reese says, teams will feel an obligation to “adjust the offense for him to give him a chance.”

“This is what people that want you to sign Kaepernick always go to – always the numbers. The stats,” Reese said on ESPN Nashville’s “Jared & The GM” this week. “They go, well, he completed this many and he’s got this many wins. They have no idea how hard it is to adjust your offense for somebody like that.”

The final reason – and the one he warns “political people” aren’t going to like – is that he believes Kaepernick is not worth the “circus.”

“You don’t want this circus,” Reese continued. “We just talked last week about how you thought Delanie Walker getting a death threat cost them the game. Well, you can imagine what’s coming with this.”

Back in September, the Titans’ tight end Delanie Walker defended his team’s recent protest of the national anthem – and, as Walker explained in an Instagram post, he and his family have since received death threats.

Because Kaepernick was the first NFL player to stage a protest during the national anthem last season, Reese believes Kaepernick and whichever team signs him would have to deal with a similar response. It’s a big reason why a number of NFL players think Kaepernick is being “blackballed” by the league.

You can listen to the snippet of Reese’s interview here.

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