Readers mutiny after ESPN's idiotic take on RGIII being signed over Kaepernick
The support and adulation for free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick has officially jumped the shark.
It’s one thing to side with his political stances. Agree or disagree, people are entitled to their beliefs.
But when support for a figure goes blind and foregoes logic, that’s a problem.
The deification of anyone is dangerous. The deification of Kaepernick is profoundly idiotic.
Take, for example, two different stories written by ESPN and Bleacher Report, titled “RGIII over Kaepernick? The NFL is just trolling us now” and “RG3 to Ravens Completes the NFL’s Dumbest Offseason of QB Signings,” respectively. Sports pundits are apparently losing their minds over the fact that Robert Griffin III is about to be the new backup quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens.
How an NFL team signing a former No. 2 overall pick to be its backup quarterback is such a big issue isn’t abundantly clear.
There wasn’t nearly this much hullabaloo when the Giants signed former top overall pick David Carr to be Eli Manning’s backup. People hardly batted an eyelash when the Pittsburgh Steelers signed former top pick Michael Vick to serve as a backup. And Griffin is younger than both Carr and Vick than when they got their backup quarterback deals.
Oh, then it must clearly be a race thing. The Ravens clearly didn’t sign Kaepernick because he’s black and the team is virulently racist. That must be it.
Oh wait…
https://www.instagram.com/p/BgNBEaoAGSL/
And no, the woman in the wedding dress isn’t Robert Griffin III.
So then what is it? It’s blind deification.
Here are the indisputable facts about why Griffin was signed ahead of Kaepernick.
First and foremost, Griffin is younger. Absolutely nobody thinks that Griffin or Kaepernick will ever be franchise cornerstone-type players again. But simply by virtue of the fact that Griffin is nearly 3 years younger than Kaepernick, Griffin has a better chance of playing longer and possibly recapturing some semblance of former glory.
Second, Griffin’s peak was higher than Kaepernick’s. Griffin’s best season was in 2012 when he claimed Offensive Rookie of the Year honors and led a moribund Redskins team to the playoffs. Kaepernick’s best season was in 2013, just a year after an agonizingly close loss in Super Bowl XLVII. Griffin, despite being 4 years younger when comparing respective seasons, threw for more yards while completing a much higher percentage of his passes (65 percent compared to 58 percent) and tossing fewer interceptions. Kaepernick was also sacked more often.
Third, yes, Kaepernick has won more playoff games than Griffin probably ever will. But that belies the real story. Griffin took a team bereft of talent on offense and just bad on defense to a closer-than-it-looks 24-14 loss in the playoffs against a loaded Seattle Seahawks team. It’s inarguable that Griffin was the straw that stirred that drink and the main reason the Redskins had as good of a 2012 as they did.
Kaepernick’s successful 49ers teams? When his supporters wax poetic about how great Kaepernick is and how he’s a Super Bowl-starting quarterback, it’s almost insulting how dismissive these people are being toward players like Patrick Willis, Justin Smith, Joe Staley, Mike Iupati, Frank Gore, Vernon Davis and Aldon Smith. At their respective peaks, each of the aforementioned ex-49ers were some of the very best players at their positions.
So, sure, Kaepernick has won more games. But there is no more overrated statistic than quarterback wins, considering that football is a team sport. A mediocre backup quarterback who can make the occasional play with his legs or arm could easily get to a Super Bowl with a stacked roster. For some reason, that sounds awfully familiar.
Perhaps the silver lining in all of this is that sports fans aren’t buying ESPN or Bleacher Report’s low-brow attempts to race-bait and politicize. ESPN, in particular, was raked through the coals by users for its story.
Kaepernick is expected to come face-to-face with Ravens officials when the team’s general manager and head coach are questioned as part of his ongoing collusion grievance against the league.
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