At a March 16 press conference, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said — unprompted — that he thought Kaepernick deserved a second chance in his first public comments since the Wilson trade. While training a week later in Washington, Kaepernick told reporters he had spoken with Carroll and general manager John Schneider and was hoping for another audition in Seattle, which had already worked him out in 2017.
Dressed in a black sleeveless Nike shirt and shorts on Friday, Kaepernick pitched for nearly two hours with about 20 others at UCLA. on the sidelines. He also placed a nice touch on deep passes to the end zone, but missed a pass that drove a receiver too far to the left on a post route.
During breaks, Kaepernick acted as an informal coach to Justyn Martin, a freshman quarterback at UCLA, who pitched alongside him during the session.
“There wasn’t a moment when he lost focus,” Martin said. “He was kind of the same person throughout training. Just seeing how he drives, how he sets the pace and me soaking up all his expertise was awesome.
Henry Organ, a sports agent based in Oakland, Calif., said he received a call from a former Nike colleague at 4 p.m. Thursday asking if he could secure court access and potential receivers for practice. from Kaepernick the next day.
Organ immediately called a strength and conditioning coach at UCLA, who donated the school’s training ground and weight room. But with few student athletes on campus over spring break, Organ, with the help of Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens and former Idaho player Najee Lovett, reached out to pass catchers. they knew in town and who might be available. Kaepernick landed in Los Angeles around midnight on a commercial flight, slept at a nearby hotel and was ready to dump anyone by Friday morning.
Organ said he was grateful to do what he could to help Kaepernick’s efforts on short notice.
“Seeing a black quarterback who is still very talented, I feel like I made history,” he said. “I can’t play him. I can’t force a team to sign him.
