Oliver Luck Sounds More Eager for John Manziel in the XFL Than Colin Kaepernick
An inevitable chapter in the ongoing saga of Colin Kaepernick was always going to be whether or not he could conceivably play in the upstart XFL. Based on a spot XFL CEO and commissioner Oliver Luck did on 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, it does not initially appear as though that will be the case:
.@OliverLuckXFL on Colin Kaepernick in the XFL - I have no idea weather Colin is in shape or not. weather he wants to play. We are a league that has salary restrictions and obviously, at least based on what people have said, that might play a role in his desire to play.
— The Ken Carman Show w/ Anthony Lima (@KenCarmanShow) April 17, 2019
The “salary restrictions” Luck is referring to is presumably about the report that Kaepernick reportedly sought $20 million to play in the AAF. Kaepernick settled his lawsuit against the NFL a few months ago, for an amount that reportedly totaled under $10 million. Given that it would presumably take one phone call from Luck to Kaepernick or his agent to gauge an interest level, it doesn’t sound like he’s too eager to find out one way or another.
It is difficult to gauge one-thousand percent because he has not said anything in his own words publicly about the matter, but my personal impression is that Kaepernick believes he remains one of the 32 best quarterbacks on the planet, and thus should not have to prove himself in one of these upstart leagues or in Canada. Kaepernick last played in the NFL in 2016, and has missed the last two full seasons.
Regarding Luck, if you juxtapose his statement about Kaepernick with this one about John Manziel, it’s pretty clear where his interest level in both quarterbacks lies:
.@OliverLuckXFL on John Manziel in the XFL - As long as he fits our profile and our behavioral standards and our 8 HCs think he he is a guy that makes us better...if Manziel is in that group, I'm sure he'd have an opportunity. We have had no contact with him
— The Ken Carman Show w/ Anthony Lima (@KenCarmanShow) April 17, 2019
It should be noted that in the league’s introductory press conference, Vince McMahon said there would be no kneeling and no criminals in the XFL. Manziel has faced very harrowing domestic violence allegations, but has also demonstrated at least an outward eagerness to redeem himself and become a professional quarterback again by playing in the CFL (which he’s banned from) and the AAF (where he was only there for a couple weeks but where his attitude was lauded).