Joe Santoro: Interesting times for Kaepernick

Colin Kaepernick would be perfect for the Miami Dolphins. Then again, each time a starting quarterback twists an ankle or gets an upset stomach it takes about three minutes for social media to declare that Kaepernick would be the perfect replacement. Earlier this week it was the Baltimore Ravens. On Thursday, when starter Ryan Tannehill injured his leg, it was the Dolphins. Next week it will be two more teams. Kaepernick never had so many supporters. The same people that were saying a year ago that he was overrated, couldn’t read defenses or throw from the pocket are now singing his praises each time a quarterback gets injured. It seems the less Kaepernick plays, the more fans love him.

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The Dolphins wouldn’t miss a beat with Kaepernick replacing Tannehill. They could go 7-9 or 8-8 with either of them. Kaepernick and Tannehill are basically the same quarterback. Both are 6-foot-4 and weigh about 225 pounds. Both are 29-years-old, tall, thin, athletic and right-handed. Tannehill is 37-40 as a starter in the NFL and Kaepernick is 28-30. Tannehill’s quarterback rating for his career is 86.5 and Kap’s is 88.9. They both have strong arms and can throw on the run. Replacing Tannehill with Kaepernick would seem to be an easy decision. But here is the problem. Kaepernick is too good. His presence on the roster would create an immediate quarterback controversy. Seattle, Baltimore, Miami, it doesn’t matter. The moment Russell Wilson or Joe Flacco struggled, the fans and media would be begging for Kaepernick. And you know Tannehill is going to struggle. That is the last thing any coach wants. Unless, of course, that is exactly what they want. The only teams that would bring Kaepernick aboard are the teams that don’t like their starting quarterback.

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Taking an entire year off from football, though, wouldn’t be the worst thing for Kaepernick. He could concentrate fully on his Colin Kaepernick Foundation and put his off-the-field life in order. He could also figure out whether or not he truly wants to play in the NFL. It might take a year away from football for Kaepernick to realize that social activism will always be there for him. The issues he believes in will always need him. Football, on the other hand, will not. And that window of opportunity is closing fast. Right now he is everybody’s favorite replacement quarterback. Soon he will be forgotten. Plenty of athletes have returned to their sport better mentally and physically after taking time off. Kaepernick has led a whirlwind life the last handful of years, starting when he led the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl. An entire year of traveling the world, doing positive things for all of the causes he believes in, just might be the best thing he could do right now. Then again, he could just sit the bench as a backup quarterback and listen for fans to chant his name each time the starter throws an interception.

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Much of the conversation surrounding the Wolf Pack football team the last few months has been about its new pass-happy offense. But the key to the entire season, as usual, will be the defense. Everybody scores points in college football, especially in the Mountain West. How you do it doesn’t matter. New Wolf Pack defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel, though, will be the reason why the Pack is the surprise team of the conference. Casteel was one of the premier defensive coordinators in the country with West Virginia and Arizona. His 3-3-5 defenses were revolutionary. And now he brings all of his experience to Nevada. Give Casteel’s defense a year or so to fully kick in and make a huge difference as he tweaks the roster, but you should see improvement right away.

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The Oakland Raiders have high expectations this year. But things might not go as smoothly in Oakland as everyone expects The Raiders have to play the fourth toughest schedule in the NFL this year behind fellow division opponents, Denver, Kansas City and the Los Angeles Chargers. And the only reason the Broncos, Chiefs and Chargers schedule is a bit tougher than Oakland’s is because Oakland doesn’t have to play Oakland twice. The Raiders season will come down to a grueling five-game stretch starting Nov. 19 when they have to play, in order, New England, Denver, the New York Giants, Kansas City and Dallas.

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The 49ers play the 20th toughest schedule in the league. Getting to play the Rams twice every year is always a bonus but the 49ers also get winnable games this year against the Bears, Colts, Texans, Redskins, Eagles, Jaguars and Titans. By the way, Colin Kaepernick would be a pretty good fit in San Francisco. He could go 8-8 against this 49ers’ schedule.

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The San Francisco Giants must think that this year’s 41-68 record heading into Thursday’s games is just an aberration. Why else would the Giants do nothing by the trading deadline except get rid of Eduardo Nunez? Of course, more deals can still be made this month and there is always the off-season. But it is a bit surprising that Matt Moore, Jeff Samardzija, Johnny Cueto, Matt Cain, Hunter Pence and Denard Span are all still on the roster. After years of putting pedal to the metal and hoping to get to the World Series, it might take a year or so before the Giants figure out that they have to tear things down and rebuild. This year might not be an aberration at all. It might be the norm for a while.

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Michael Jordan says that he could beat LaVar Ball in a game of one-on-one on just one good leg. Jordan needs to stop responding to Lonzo’s dad. Lonzo’s dad couldn’t beat former Jordan teammate Will Perdue in a game of one-on-one, let alone the greatest player in the history of the league. It is beneath Jordan to comment on anything Ball, a guy that averaged 2.2 points a game for one season at Washington State, says. This is the same as the old, fat celebrity who finishes 10th in Dancing With the Stars trash talking Fred Astaire. Just stop it.