New reports maintain that the National Football League is seeking a summary judgment to put an end to Colin Kaepernick’s collusion case against the NFL.
The NFL is reportedly asking arbitrator Stephen Burbank to bring Kaepernick’s case to an immediate end. A summary judgment —where the arbitrator rules that there isn’t enough proof to make the case viable — is allowed according to the Collective Bargaining Agreement for collusion disputes, Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson reported.
Burbank will now be tasked with reviewing all the claims, accusations, and evidence presented by Kaepernick’s legal team and trying to determine if there is enough to suggest the NFL’s owners and coaches “colluded” to keep him out of the league.
The former San Francisco 49er turned free agent at the end of the 2016 football season but, after a full year of mounting anti-American protests during the national anthem, he found no team willing to sign him for the 2017 season.
Many officials insisted publicly that they took a pass on Kaepernick because he was a second-string quarterback and just not good enough to warrant inclusion on their teams, but Kaepernick maintained that he was blackballed behind the scenes over his activism and prevented from finding a team to sign him.
Kaepernick brought his case to the National Football League Players Association in October of 2017.
The player has deposed a long list of up to 14 league officials and owners already. The list includes NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, Houston Texans owner Bob McNair, and many others.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.