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Houston Texans Free Agency Rumors: Bill O’Brien, Team ‘Watching’ Colin Kaepernick

By Brian K. Patterson

Nov 13, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) looks on prior to the game against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 13, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) looks on prior to the game against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Houston Texans are still in the midst of the free agency period and the team has been part of little action after the legal tampering period had ended a few weeks ago.

The Houston Texans are still in the midst of the free agency period and the team has been part of little action after the legal tampering period had ended a few weeks ago.

They’ve just continued to let their free agents sign with other teams.

Yes, A.J. Bouye, Quintin Demps, Oday Aboushi and Don Jones have bolted to other teams showcasing their talents while the Houston Texans stand pat.

The aforementioned guys that I’m talking about are not necessarily make or break for the team but they provided valuable contributions each and every week of the season.

To let all of those guys go at once means that the Houston Texans plan to be quite active during the draft as well as stockpile of compensatory picks as a result of these guys leaving.

For Bouye leaving, the team could get as high as a third-round future pick.

Interesting, isn’t it?

However, the Houston Texans did re-sign Ryan Griffin to a three-year, $9 million deal, ensuring that our tight-end set of he and C.J. Fiedorowicz is intact.

But one thing that hasn’t been settled yet is the quarterback position.

Brock Osweiler is thankfully gone via a trade which leaves Tom Savage and Brandon Weeden the only QB’s under contract on the roster.

Will Bill O’Brien turn to Savage?

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It’s possible but with so many options available, likely not.

But there’s one option that I didn’t even think the Houston Texans were even considering.

According to a report by Pro Football Talk, the team has been keeping tabs on the status of exiled quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ve escalated their feelings to bona-fide interest but it does mean that the team is weighing all options.

Bill O’Brien jumped on PFT Live, the blog’s podcast to talk about a variety of topics but the subject of Kaepernick came up in the interview.

Here’s what he said:

"“We’ve watched him,” O’Brien said. “Like I’ve said, we feel good about where we’re at right now with Tom and Brandon Weeden, but we’ve watched him and discussed him. I think that’s a fluid situation as far as free agency goes, not just for Colin Kaepernick but for the teams."

This at least confirms that they haven’t thrown Savage under the bus for the next best thing.

He also added this tidbit:

"“As you know, your roster’s not totally set until right before you open that season. He’s a good football player, he can run, he’s been coached well by [Jim] Harbaugh and Chip Kelly. Those guys are excellent coaches, so you know the background that he has. We’ll continue to discuss all the positions on our team, but we’ve definitely watched him.”"

This is surprising considering that Kaepernick’s best attributes are those that O’Brien usually doesn’t want in a quarterback.

He wants a QB that stays in the pocket and only move out of it when he has to but we all know that Kaep does that on a regular basis regardless.

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This demonstrates that Bill is willing to be amicable to his offensive strategy to accommodate any new talent coming in.

But have we all thought about what if Kaepernick were brought in the fold in H-Town?

Under typical circumstances, it’d be a non-issue.

But we all know about Kaepernick famously taking a stand against the racial violence on those of color here in the U.S. by opting to kneel instead of standing for the national anthem at the start of games.

This move ruffled a lot of feathers — not mine — because it was certainly something that hadn’t been done before on such a large scale.

As a man of color myself, I empathized and supported what Kaepernick did because he effectively used one of the largest media platforms in the world — the NFL — to bring about his sentiments.

He not only provided a voice — for those who don’t have one — but got an important discussion about our nation’s racial relations as a whole.

Old Glory means different things to variety of people in a multitude of ways so this is quite understandable.

And to that, I think it’s admirable that he had the guts to do it, risking his career with all of the intricacies that come with it by emanating his concerns.

If the Texans decide on bringing him in — which is unlikely — think about how the fans would react if Kaep decided to kneel during the national anthem.

Now I’ve been a lifelong Texan — I’ve talked about this topic with many I know — things could get quite dicey at the beginning of games.

Not the mention the potential shift/divide in the locker room with players on either side of Kaep’s stance.

Next: Was Brock Osweiler Given Enough Time?

Although I know the Texans are eyeing Tony Romo, I’d fully support bringing Kaep to the Texans, despite of what all has transpired this past season, he’s a talented QB that just needs a change of scenery.

It’s possible — we’ll see.

Kaepernick, 29, passed for 2,241 yards (59.2 percent completion rate) and threw 16 touchdowns to four interceptions with 468 yards and two touchdowns on the ground through 12 games (11 starts) in 2016.

Go Texans.

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