by EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — If Colin Kaepernick wants to join the Los Angeles Chargers, it won’t happen until next year at the earliest.
And this will only be as a member of Jim Harbaugh’s coaching staff.
“I love Colin, but he will not be on the coaching staff, which is what we’re planning for this year. And he won’t be playing on the roster,” Harbaugh said after practice on Thursday.
Harbaugh, who coached Kaepernick in San Francisco from 2011 to 2014, told USA Today Sports earlier this week that he contacted Kaepernick shortly after being named coach on Jan. 24 to ask if he wanted to join the Chargers staff.
Harbaugh said Thursday that it wasn’t the first time he had talked to Kaepernick about coaching, and that he had mentioned it a few times when he was coach at Michigan.
“I’ve thought that for a long time. I just have respect for his football mind and the football man that he is,” Harbaugh said when asked what made him think Kaepernick would be a good coach. “(The late Raiders owner) Al Davis saw something in me that made him think I would be a good coach, and I see those same qualities in Colin. If he chooses to be that.”
Kaepernick, who turns 37 on November 3, has not played in an NFL game since January 1, 2017. Before that, he began kneeling on the sidelines of games during the national anthem to protest social injustice and police brutality.
But Kaepernick, who played six seasons for San Francisco after being selected as a second-round pick in 2011, still hopes to return. During the recent Olympic Games in Paris, he told British broadcaster Sky Sports News that he is still training.
“I’ve trained for this my whole life, so if I could get back on the field, that would be a big moment, a big accomplishment for me,” Kaepernick said. “I think I could bring a lot to a team and help them win a championship.”
Kaepernick had a 29-16 record as a starter, including the playoffs when Harbaugh was his coach. After Harbaugh left for Michigan, Kaepernick’s record was 3-17.
Kaepernick was the starting quarterback in Super Bowl 47 against Baltimore. He completed 16 of 28 passes for 302 yards and one touchdown and also scored a touchdown in San Francisco’s 34-31 loss.
Harbaugh has three players on his Chargers staff that he coached in San Francisco – NaVorro Bowman, Jonathan Goodwin and Will Tukuafu. Mike Iupati and Delanie Walker were assistant coaches during training camp, while Dashon Goldson is a coaching intern for this season.
Greg Roman, Kaepernick’s offensive coordinator in San Francisco from 2011 to 2014, also runs the Chargers’ offense.
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