If you saw what happened to Alex Smith’s leg, you didn’t need the updates. Watching the video was enough to tell you that his tibia and fibula were broken, and that he needed immediate surgery, and that he’s out for the year. It was one of the more gruesome football injuries in recent memory, and came 33 years to the day—in a game with the same final score—as Joe Theismann’s legendary injury. The point is, the Skins need a quarterback.
Colt McCoy, the only other QB on the roster, replaced Smith in the third quarter and nearly led a comeback, but Washington came up just short, losing 23-21 to Houston. McCoy, let us stipulate, is not good enough. He is in that weird limbo as a perfectly fine backup, who in theory can step in when a starter goes down, but in practice—well, you’d rather he be holding a clipboard than a football. And this is not a team that can afford to mail it in. The Skins are 6-4, a game up in a decidedly mediocre NFC East, and with a competent QB would have a clear path to the playoffs. And then, who knows? This is the NFL, and in the postseason you just need to win four in a row.
But what if there were a better option than McCoy? Just sitting at home, waiting for the call from a QB-desparate team with an otherwise pretty good situation? It’s time for the Skins to work the phones:
Hey, you know who’s a free agent and who is definitely a better QB than Colt McCoy? Colin Kaepernick. Whatever happened to that guy?
According to a source with direct knowledge of Kaepernick’s mindset and ongoing physical activities and preparation, Kaepernick wants to play. He continues to work out five hours per day, six days per week for one reason and one reason alone. He wants to play.
So Kapernick wants to play, and the Skins have the cap space to pay him (especially considering any deal would be prorated for less than half the season.) If Washington doesn’t at least reach out to Kaepernick, that’s football malpractice. And Skins fans ought to be angry that their team isn’t trying its hardest to win.
m. Again, I know a guy.
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