Colin Kaepernick debate is over

When the Indianapolis Colts, desperate for a viable cornerback, reached into their emergency contact list to sign Philip RiversThis was surprising because he retired and had not played since 2020.

And do you know what became no less surprising after this step? Nobody famous complained Colin Kaepernick this is not an option.

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No complaints about Kaepernick.

Kaepernick did not practice with the Colts, was not contacted, and was not even considered, although the Colts approached other quarterbacks.

And what followed Kaepernick's omission was, well, nothing.

There was no backlash. There are no noticeable complaints about Kaepernick being blacklisted. No accusations of racism after Indianapolis signed a 44-year-old white guy instead of a 38-year-old black guy.

There was no mention in the NFL media or in pundit circles of another Kaepernick snub – not even from Kaepernick's chief defender, Mike Florio.

So why is this remarkable?

This is noteworthy because it could mean the end of an era. Finally! This signals that perhaps gone are the days of people accusing every NFL team of racism when they didn't sign Kaepernick to fill a need for a quarterback.

Colin Kaepernick Memory Fade

It signals an understanding that teams don't care nearly as much about complaints from fans or the media as they do about Kaepernick's complications.

It signals that people are finally understanding the accusations of racism from people with certain political views directed at an empty NFL ring made up of 75 percent black people.

So yes, it's a big deal.

The Broncos' practice squad quarterback said he turned down the opportunity to return to the Colts.

This is important because the fans who portrayed Kaepernick as some sort of hero when he said, “I'm not going to stand up to show pride in the flag of a country that oppresses black people and people of color” once forgot what a hypocrite this was the very day of his first protest.

But now they may have simply forgotten him.

Tons of QB moves without complaining

Rivers isn't the first quarterback this year to come out of nowhere and sign with the practice squad ahead of Kaepernick. Throughout this season we have had a slew of mostly flawed quarterbacks sign with practice squads.

Shane Buechele with the Bills.

Brady Cook with the Jets.

Bailey Zappe with the Browns.

Seth Henigan with the Jaguars before working out against the Colts on Tuesday, just as Rivers did.

More? Trevor Siemian traveled well with the Titans, Chris Oladokun with the Chiefs, Cam Miller with the Raiders.

The Colts also added Brett Rypien.

There are about a dozen more such defenders on NFL practice squads. And some of these guys were cut and replaced. Some even took root in other teams.

Brett Rypien started with the Bengals, was promoted to the active roster, then released, then signed with the Colts practice squad and then promoted to the active roster in Indy on Wednesday.

But among all these steps, not a single Kaepernick

And there are no complaints about this either.

Activists in 2017 would not recognize this world.

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The end has come for Kaepernick

None of these guys have reached the ceiling that Kaepernick once reached while playing for a Super Bowl team. But their potential is much higher than where Kaepernick fell at the end of his NFL career.

Did you notice what I did there? “Late in NFL career” was not written by mistake.

That end really came after the 2016 season.

It just so happened that it took almost ten years for everyone to accept it and obviously move on.