With just two days until the 2017 NFL season kicks off, Colin Kaepernick remains a free agent.
Different gestures, displays of solidarity and signals of protest have arisen during the national anthem by other players during preseason games in 2017, but the former 49ers quarterback, who started the trend last year as a way to protest social justice issues and racial inequality in America, has not generated much interest from teams in need of quarteback help.
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton came out in Kaepernick's defense Tuesday when asked about the issue at the end of his news conference.
"I really think it's not fair. I think it's unfair. But not to take any storm or glory away from his game, we're trying to find every way to beat the 49ers come Sunday. But in my opinion, do I think Kaepernick is better than some of these starting quarterbacks in this league? Absolutely," Newton said. "Should he be on a roster? In my opinion, absolutely. There's no question about it. Is he good enough to be on a roster? Is he good enough to be a starting quarterback? Absolutely. But our main focus right now is to try to beat the 49ers on Sunday."
Broncos linebacker Von Miller in an interview that will air during NFL Network's Total Access on Tuesday, said he'd welcome Kaepernick to Denver's roster. In need of a veteran backup with Paxton Lynch battling a shoulder injury, the Broncos signed Brock Osweiler on Monday.
"One hundred percent," Miller said. "If John Elway and Joe Ellis and the great leadership we have here at the Denver Broncos brought Colin Kaepernick here to our team I'd welcome him with open arms. It would be great to have Colin here. We have a lot of different types of personalities from Aqib Talib to T.J. Ward (now on the Bucs) to Derek Wolfe to Paxton [Lynch] ... I feel like he'd be a perfect match in our locker room and not only in our locker room but around the league.
"I think he can fit in any locker room around the league. He's definitely better than a couple of these quarterbacks in the National Football League. There's not 64 quarterbacks that are better than him -- and in the National Football League that's what it's about -- what can you do for me, how can you perform for me on the football field. So, I don't see why he's not on a team."
Kaepernick, who completed 59.2 percent of his passes for 2,241 yards, 16 touchdowns and four interceptions last year, has some high-profile names in his corner. Newton, the league's 2015 MVP and Miller, the Super Bowl 50 MVP, are certainly among the most notable. As the NFL's opening weekend approaches, their comments show that the conversation Kaepernick started won't be going away any time soon.
