Anthony Lynn appears to be the first coach to express interest in looking at the controversial quarterback, who has been out of football since 2016.
After NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said this week he would “encourage” a team to sign Colin Kaepernick, the question became who would show interest in the controversial quarterback.
Chargers coach Anthony Lynn answered that question Wednesday.
Lynn said the Chargers “probably” will try out Kaepernick, who hasn’t been offered a job in the NFL since he knelt during the national anthem in 2016 to protest police violence and racism.
“Colin definitely fits the style of quarterback for the system we’re going to run. I’m very confident in the three quarterbacks we have, but you can never have too many people on the runway,” Lynn said in a video chat with reporters.
“Kap was a Super Bowl quarterback, he was a starting quarterback in this league. I think it would be crazy to not have him on your workout list.”
It appears that Lynn is the first NFL coach to express interest in trying out Kaepernick since Goodell’s statement in an ESPN interview Monday that he would “welcome” a team signing the former San Francisco 49er.
Last week, Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said he received a call from another team asking for information about Kaepernick, who had visited the Seahawks in 2017 but wasn’t signed.
Lynn said the Chargers weren’t the team that contacted Carroll, and said he hasn’t talked with Kaepernick or tried to gauge his interest.
The coach said he thinks Chargers general manager Tom Telesco and owner Dean Spanos would support looking at Kaepernick.
A decision on whether to sign Kaepernick would hinge on how he performed in a tryout and not on its potential political implications, Lynn said.
Kaepernick, now 32, has missed three seasons. He was one of the NFL’s leading quarterbacks in 2012, when the 49ers went to the Super Bowl, losing to the Baltimore Ravens.
