It’s now clear that the Browns would like to upgrade their quarterback position, given the failed trade for A.J. McCarron. And it’s been clear that coach Hue Jackson has an affinity for Kaepernick, dating back to the 2011 draft. It’s also abundantly clear that someone above Jackson currently doesn’t want Kaepernick in Cleveland.
But maybe the Browns should reconsider its reluctance to add Kaepernick, for reasons indepedent of the fact that he could help improve on the team’s 1-23 skid mark over the past two seasons.
The Texans, based on Monday’s comments from coach Bill O’Brien, seem to at least be considering the possibility of adding Kaepernick. And to the extent that O’Brien’s remarks may have been a trial balloon aimed at determining whether Houstonians would react in a strongly negative fashion to the possibility of signing the man who sparked the anthem controversy (and to the extent that a strong negative reaction hasn’t emerged), the Texans could be planning to make a move.
Without Kaepernick, the 3-5 Texans could plunge in the standings. Which will cause them to skyrocket in the draft order. And with the Browns holding Houston’s first- and second- round picks in 2018, that would be very good news for Cleveland.
To summarize, Kaepernick would help Cleveland. Not getting Kaepernick would hurt Houston. Which would help Cleveland.
And getting Kaepernick a real opportunity would help the NFL navigate around a collusion case that, despite the board room huffing and puffing from Covington & Burling lawyers who have a $trong incentive to see the league fight tooth and nail, could go very poorly for the league and its teams.
So it would make plenty of sense for the Browns to do it. Which obviously means they won’t.