Jon Gruden 'Surprised' Colin Kaepernick Has Not Signed With a Team

Jon Gruden thinks Colin Kaepernick will have an NFL job “soon.”

Oakland Raiders head coach Jon Gruden said he is surprised that free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick is still unsigned.

Kaepernick has not played since the 2016 season after protesting the national anthem throughout that season, citing racial inequality and police brutality. 

Kaepernick filed a grievance last October against NFL owners for collusion, claiming they schemed to keep him off the football field because of his protests.

"I think there's a lot of intrigue there," Gruden said at the NFL owners meetings. "His performance on the field wasn't very good, on tape. I think, Robert Griffin, a rookie of the year, 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, 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."

In 2016, Kaepernick was recovering from multiple surgeries, when Gabbert got the nod and started the first five games of the season. Gabbert went 1–4 in those games and was replaced by Kaepernick.

Gabbert, a former first–round pick, signed a deal on Tuesday with the Tennessee Titans.