NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Wednesday said the league has “moved on” from free-agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick. The remarks come weeks after Kaepernick’s highly publicized workout in front of several NFL scouts.
During a news conference in Irving, Texas, Goodell responded to a reporter’s question about the November workout with Kaepernick and how it ultimately fell apart.
“This was about creating an opportunity,” Goodell said. “We created that opportunity. It was a unique opportunity, an incredible opportunity and he chose not to take it. I understand that. And we’ve moved on here.”
Kaepernick abruptly changed the location of his planned NFL workout at the Atlanta Falcons practice facility, moving the event to a facility roughly 60 miles away just half an hour before it was expected to begin. Kaepernick and his agent, Jeff Nalley, said the last-minute change was over a lack of transparency from the NFL. Nalley told reporters that representatives from eight teams attended the event.
The workout was meant to be Kaepernick’s first step in returning to the NFL, and an opportunity to demonstrate that he still has the skills required to compete at a professional level. While it hasn’t led to the signing of Kaepernick, the Washington Redskins signed Jordan Veasy, one of the wide receivers who participated in the workout.
The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback hasn’t played in the league since January 2017, after he was allegedly frozen out of the league for kneeling during the national anthem as a symbol of protest against police brutality and racism. Kaepernick sued the NFL for colluding to keep him out of the league, and the two sides reached a settlement in February.
Additional reporting by Jordan Freiman.
