Jon Gruden ‘Surprised’ Colin Kaepernick Still Not On NFL Roster

Colin Kaepernick remains a free agent, but Jon Gruden doesn’t think he will be unemployed much longer.

The Oakland Raiders head coach was asked about Kaepernick’s situation Tuesday, and he gave a confusing answer before noting he believes the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback will be getting an NFL paycheck soon.

“I think there’s a lot of intrigue there,” Gruden said, via ESPN. “His performance on the field wasn’t very good, on tape. I think, Robert Griffin, a rookie of the year, (I’m) surprised he’s out there. Tim Tebow takes a team to the playoffs, there’s some surprise that he never came back. You know, Johnny Manziel, he’s out there.

“Back to Kaepernick, you know he got beat out by (Blaine) Gabbert, to start the (2016) season. I think that says something. (But) I am surprised he’s not in camp with somebody. He probably will be soon.”

Gruden’s evaluation of Kaepernick is a bit off.

The 30-year-old lost out to Gabbert in 2016 because he was coming off surgery in the offseason that caused him to lose a significant amount of weight. When Kaepernick eventually took the job back, however, he was solid, tossing 16 touchdowns to only four interceptions. Over the last six games of the 2016 season, Kaepernick posted a passer rating of 96.2, which is the same number that Jimmy Garoppolo posted in six games for the 49ers in 2017.

While Kaepernick certainly deserves a job in the NFL, his ongoing collusion lawsuit against the league makes it highly unlikely that he will be on a roster come training camp.