To shore up their needs at quarterback, the Ravens signed arena league QB David Olson. ESPN reports Olson will help spell Ryan Mallett, who has taken Flacco's spot with the first-team offense, and Dustin Vaughan, who is on his fourth team in four seasons. But the big consideration for the Ravens is whether to add controversial QB Colin Kaepernick to the mix of signal callers.
A back injury to Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco may not be as serious as initially thought. Coach John Harbaugh talked to reporters Thursday after day one of training camp and said that while Flacco's back soreness may not be serious, it is serious enough to keep him out of practice for at least a week. Harbaugh said a back specialist is recommending the rest. The injury happened reportedly during weightlifting. Flacco is due to address the media later today.
To shore up their needs at quarterback, the Ravens signed arena league QB David Olson. ESPN reports Olson will help spell Ryan Mallett, who has taken Flacco's spot with the first-team offense, and Dustin Vaughan, who is on his fourth team in four seasons. But the big consideration for the Ravens is whether to add controversial QB Colin Kaepernick to the mix of signal callers. Kaepernick was a lightning of distraction during last year with the San Francisco 49ers, for not standing during the national anthem as a form of protest against police brutality across the country.
During a press conference Thursday, Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh told reporters Thursday that he would “not rule it out at all.” Harbaugh said [Kaepernick] is a really good football player and I believe he’s a really good person.” Last year, Kaepernick started 11 games, threw for 2,241 yards and tossed 16 touchdowns to four interceptions. He ran for 468 yards and another couple of touchdowns.
“We’re definitely going to get another arm in here,” said Harbaugh. “But he’s not an arm, obviously. He’s an accomplished football player and we always like having good football players around here.”
As Kaepernick is under consideration by the Ravens, ESPN reports Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt says he would have “no problem” signing the embattled quarterback. But, there is a common thread that links Harbaugh to Kaepernick –a level of familiarity. Harbaugh has known Colin Kaepernick through his brother Jim, who coached Kaepernick for four years in San Francisco. According to the Baltimore Ravens website, John also got to know Kaepernick better when the 49ers traveled to Baltimore for a week of training camp scrimmages in 2014. Harbaugh said whether the Ravens or any team signs Kaepernick will depend on a lot of factors, but as for his squad, “it’s all speculation now.”