Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick priced himself out of a job with the XFL, according to Commissioner Oliver Luck.
The eight-team league held its first slate of games over the weekend, but without Kaepernick, who last year indicated he wanted to return to the NFL.
The XFL operates under a different player management model than the NFL, centrally hiring all of the teams’ players prior to the first draft.
In an interview with NPR about the upstart league, Luck was asked about the quarterback who began the trend of national anthem protests.
“Great football player,” he said. “I — you know, I’m not going to talk about any particular player outside of the group of guys that we have because we think — again, we’ve got the best 500 or so players under contract who aren’t in the National Football League or in other professional leagues,” he said.
Kaepernick was considered, Luck said.
More Westerners Waking up to Islam as Gov’t Bans Face Coverings, Leaving Both Muslims and (Ironically) Feminists Angry
Candace Cameron Bure Tears Up on Air Over Constant Criticism, But God Provided a Literally Perfect Smile Through the Pain
Fauci’s lawyers launch legal defense fund as federal, state investigations mount against him
Texas Gov Abbott asks the Justice Department to investigate ‘discriminatory’ Islamic washing stations
DOJ says Rubio should have final say over Foreign Service board in latest bid to tighten executive powers
Trump Announces Deal to ‘Substantially Lower the Price of Ground Beef’
Chinese Man Charged with Illegally Voting in US Election and Trying to Frame Someone Else
US threatens Belgian university over suspension of academic who exposed Jason Arday fraud
Two US Army Corps of Engineers employees among 8 killed in Alaska charter plane crash
WATCH: Deputies hunt wanted man through cornfield after high-speed chase caught on camera
Black voters rip Dems over taking them for granted in El-Sayed’s backyard: ‘Hush us up’
Trump-appointed judge blocks blue state’s crackdown on ICE detention center
Breaking: Supreme Court Sides with Trump on White House Ball Room Construction
NY Knicks Owner Turns Against Kathy Hochul, Gives Big to Republican Opponent
ICC president decries being sanctioned by US: ‘Demise of international rule of law’
“We gave it some thought,” he said. “We have some pretty significant salary restrictions, you know. We’re a startup league, so we want to make sure that we can be fiscally responsible and fiscally prudent. And the salary requirements that some folks shared with us were in our case exorbitant, so we couldn’t go down that path.”
When asked again if it all boiled down to money, Luck was emphatic.
“I’m saying that we spoke with his representative, and the salary requirements that were broached in that conversation were exorbitant and certainly out of our range,” he said.
Kaepernick’s last NFL contract was a six-year, $126 million extension, according to CBS Sports — averaging $21 million per year.
More Westerners Waking up to Islam as Gov’t Bans Face Coverings, Leaving Both Muslims and (Ironically) Feminists Angry
Candace Cameron Bure Tears Up on Air Over Constant Criticism, But God Provided a Literally Perfect Smile Through the Pain
Fauci’s lawyers launch legal defense fund as federal, state investigations mount against him
Texas Gov Abbott asks the Justice Department to investigate ‘discriminatory’ Islamic washing stations
DOJ says Rubio should have final say over Foreign Service board in latest bid to tighten executive powers
Trump Announces Deal to ‘Substantially Lower the Price of Ground Beef’
Chinese Man Charged with Illegally Voting in US Election and Trying to Frame Someone Else
US threatens Belgian university over suspension of academic who exposed Jason Arday fraud
Two US Army Corps of Engineers employees among 8 killed in Alaska charter plane crash
WATCH: Deputies hunt wanted man through cornfield after high-speed chase caught on camera
Black voters rip Dems over taking them for granted in El-Sayed’s backyard: ‘Hush us up’
Trump-appointed judge blocks blue state’s crackdown on ICE detention center
Breaking: Supreme Court Sides with Trump on White House Ball Room Construction
NY Knicks Owner Turns Against Kathy Hochul, Gives Big to Republican Opponent
ICC president decries being sanctioned by US: ‘Demise of international rule of law’
Last year, Sporting News, citing sources it did not name, reported that Kaepernick had sought nearly that much — $20 million per year — to play in the XFL. According to The Associated Press, he had demanded the same amount to play in the other upstart spring league, the Alliance of American Football, which folded last April in the middle of its first season.
The average XFL player is expected to make $55,000 this season, according to Fox News.
Story cited here.
