Hump day hot takes: Colin Kaepernick doesn’t leave the bench, the Dallas Cowboys are better off without Tony Romo and more

It’s the all football edition, and no, it doesn’t get very political. 

Editor’s Note: ChinMusicPod.com’s football preview continues. In case you missed it, Brendan kicked it off by defending Eli Manning.

Labor Day is almost here. So while we’re slaving away in the cubes, waiting for the long weekend to finally arrive, I decided to take a look around the NFL, and give you five hot takes in the last week of the year before football is officially back. Miss last week’s hot takes? Check it out before diving into this one. Here. We. Go.

1. It’s pretty easy to make a “statement” when you’re already on the bench, Colin Kaepernick

This will be about as political as I ever get on this website, or in general for that matter. I hate talking about politics and picking sides. I will vote who I want to vote for and that’s that. It’s also nobody’s business but my own. So that’s it.

Here’s the thing, regardless of whether you agree or disagree with Colin Kaepernick protesting the violence against African-Americans by sitting during the National Anthem, it’s his right to do it. I won’t say whether I agree or not. That’s not the whole point of this argument. Plenty of other people agree or disagree with his message – good for them. You have a right to do something in this country. But, people also have the right to call you an asshole. That’s their right too.

But for Kaepernick to do what he did, I don’t find his action to be something that took a lot of guts. Does he live in the public spotlight? Yup. Is he a well known figure? Sure. But in terms of his NFL career and jeopardizing his future in his job, this statement didn’t really change anything. He was slated to be the backup quarterback for the Niners this year, and this action doesn’t change that.

To date, the former Nevada QB has made just over $29 million in the NFL. Not a bad gig for a guy who had two pretty good years, and then fell off the map in 2015. Hell, if Blaine fucking Gabbert took your job away, you suck at it. And that’s the crux of this whole take. Kaepernick’s protest is pretty easy to do when you aren’t going to be starting this year, and his $12 million salary was fully guaranteed for this season back in April.

He can live comfortably with his $29 million for the rest of his life. Because I would be absolutely stunned if another team, let alone the 49ers, decides to take on this PR nightmare of an average QB.

Editor’s note: A remarkably level headed take from Tim here. I already gave my thoughts on the matter in this week’s Monday Morning Update, so give that a look if you want my thoughts on all this.

2. Tony Romo’s injury actually puts the Dallas Cowboys in a better spot

I’m sure you just thought that I’m taking crazy pills. Let me assure you – I’m not. But Tony Romo’s injury has put the Dallas Cowboys in a better position for this season.

The main reason why I have this take is because this marks the fourth straight year in which Romo has been hurt and will miss playing time. You can call it flukey or whatever you want, but I’m calling a spade a spade. He’s injury prone, and he’s more likely than not going to miss time during the regular season or playoffs. So sure, even though the Cowboys sucked last year and even though Dak Prescott is now in line to start, I still think Dallas is in a better position.

Every year it’s been the same story with Romo. The Cowboys do pretty well with him to start, he goes down for a significant chunk of time, and then Dallas spirals into mediocrity. So if you’re a Cowboys fan, waiting for that inevitable other shoe to drop with a Romo injury, wouldn’t you want it to happen now instead of in Week 11? By that time the Cowboys might be dead in the water and the season down the toilet, but at the very least you’ve played Prescott and you’re not waiting for that moment when Romo lays down on the field in a pile of injury-plagued goo.

Regardless of the Cowboys’ record by the time Romo returns, at least they aren’t buying time until he ruins their season down the homestretch. He might come back in time healthy enough for them to challenge for a playoff spot in a terrible NFC East.

Editor’s note: Of course Dak is making his debut against the Giants. I’d be lying if I said the idea of a motivated rookie looking to make a name for himself against a rival didn’t scare the shit out me. Kind of wish we were getting Tony.

3. John Elway really screwed up the Denver Broncos quarterback situation

When that mouth-breathing asshole (no Brendan, not your idol, another mouth-breathing asshole) Peyton Manning rode off into the sunset with the Vince Lombardi trophy after Super Bowl 50, it seemed like Brock Osweiller was in line to take over the reigns for the Broncos after playing pretty well last year.

In the eyes of John Elway, that wasn’t the case. I understand the Broncos not wanting to pony up (sorry, no pun intended) for Osweiller’s outrageous contract, but entering the season as the defending Super Bowl champion with the likes of Mark Sanchez, Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch (confession, I actually had to look up the spellings of Siemian and Paxton) as your quarterback trio is pretty fucking outlandish.

And now that Siemian has been named the starter, I have to ask if Elway has any clue what he’s doing with the Broncos. This guy was drafted in the 7th round out of Northwestern after an average senior year, and has yet to throw a regular-season pass in the NFL. Something tells me a lot of No. 13 jerseys aren’t flying off the shelves in Denver this year.

Sure, the Broncos have an incredible defense. I saw it first hand as a Patriots fan in the AFC title game, and Cam Newton got hit in the mouth so many times he didn’t want to talk after the Super Bowl. But John, babe, you can’t win many games with this schmuck under center. You can try, but I think the Broncos are setting themselves up for a huge disaster one year after winning it all.

Also, if you’re Mark Sanchez, and Siemian beat you out for a starting role, it’s probably time to hang ’em up. God, he sucks. Long live the Buttfumble.

Editor’s note: Maybe consistency is kind of important, eh Tim?

4. The Philadelphia Eagles are approaching the Washington Redskins for terrible draft pick trades

I bet you’re thinking it’s way too early to judge a trade for Carson Wentz. I don’t care though, because that trade is getting worse by the day. When Wentz went down with a rib injury last week for the Eagles, the already beleaguered fan base had to be calling for heads from management and the coaching staff. Let alone the fact that this kid was taken No. 2 overall from North Dakota State (lol), he’s playing in a terrible offense, with a shitty coach, and overall very little chance of success.

And I think that’s the kicker. The Eagles mortgaged their future, giving up two first-round picks (2016, 2017) a second-round pick (2018) and their third and fourth rounders from 2016 as well. All for Carson Wentz. You’ve sent the farm for a kid who was already hurt in a preseason game, and who really hasn’t done much to help save the franchise after a disastrous year. Chip Kelly has to be laughing somewhere.

That brings me to the Redskins trade for Robert Griffin III (who actually looks pretty good in Cleveland) and how the two are pretty similar. A team in desperate need of a starting QB sends way too many draft picks away, only to be stuck with a not-very-good quarterback to tread water with until the team can restock for the future. It’s comparable, and should have Eagles fans (like podcast guest Tommy Dragani) worried for the future of their franchise.

5. Speaking of awful trades, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers pulled off the flop of the century with kicker Roberto Aguayo

By now you’ve probably heard and read about Tampa Bay Bucs kicker Roberto Aguayo. The rookie kicker from Florida State really sucked in his first couple weeks in the NFL. He was ripped apart from all ends of the world for his terrible beginning, and rightfully so. For as much as you’ve read about Aguayo being shitty at kicking field goals, you’ve probably forgotten that the Buccaneers actually traded up to draft him… in the SECOND ROUND.

In doing the research for this hot take, I actually found out that 10 other kickers have been taken ahead of Aguayo in NFL history. That blew my mind. I was positive only a couple teams, including the Oakland Raiders taking Sebastian Janikowski in the first round, had ever drafter a kicker that high. Boy was I wrong, and man are NFL general managers pretty fucking dumb at times.

Anyways, trading up to take a kicker is a head-scratching move. And even though Aguayo went 6-for-6 the other night on extra points, I’m not done believing in the lack of testicular fortitude for this kid. When your team has to stop kicks at practice because fans are booing, you’re screwed. Good luck to this guy when the games actually matter.

6. Bonus Take: New stadium for Minnesota Vikings, same disappointing team with Teddy Bridgewater’s injury

So this one is definitely way too early to tell, but Teddy Bridgewater leaving Tuesday’s practice in an ambulance with a left knee injury is pretty noteworthy. The Vikings are opening their brand new, nearly $2 billion stadium this year, and now it looks like Shaun Hill will be the one taking the snaps on opening night. After last year’s playoff disaster, I didn’t think that things for the Vikings could get any worse. Looks like I was wrong.

Catch the football fever Minnesota!

Camel of the Week: Everyone who drafted Teddy Bridgewater already

No photoshop this week, because there is no one person who is the camel. Truly, it is all of us. With the news of Bridgewater’s injury coming probably came the cries of a billion fantasy owners who drafted Bridgewater last weekend during their drafts.

Things like that are why fantasy sports are the worst. Truly, they are. But every year, we draft time and time again. Why? I don’t know, this isn’t my blog. I didn’t even make a photoshop this week.

The real camels, though, are the people who forget about the injury and draft him this weekend.

That’ll do it for us. We’ll be back next week with some more hot takes for your Wednesday reading enjoyment. Follow Tim on Twitter@culvey13 and Brendan at @MurraySportTalk for more, or to tell me us we’re morons. Either way, have at it.