Colin Kaepernick holds his own workout, and NFL calls him a no-show

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Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick's much-anticipated NFL workout was all but scuttled Saturday when he made a last-minute venue change, and the league responded that he was a no-show.

The 32-year-old free agent said in a statement that the venue was changed to allow the media to attend after the NFL had planned a private workout at the Atlanta Falcons training center in Flowery Branch.

Kaepernick finished his workout, then met with fans who lined the field after the 40-minute session. Sources for the athlete said representatives from at least seven NFL teams attended the showcase.

The NFL said 25 clubs were present and all 32 teams would have received video footage of the event.

"We are disappointed that Colin did not appear for his workout," the league said in a statement. "Today's session was designed to give Colin what he has consistently said he wants, an opportunity to show his football readiness and desire to return to the NFL.""

The league said it bent over backward for the free agent by allowing him to bring his own video crew and use his own receivers and approving an advertising shoot by sponsor Nike during the workout.

Kaepernick's representatives said in a statement that the media would have been shut out of the Falcons' facility, and they wanted "transparency." They also said the NFL wanted him to sign a waiver they described as "unusual." The league said it was "standard."

"The NFL has demanded that as a precondition to the workout, Mr. Kaepernick sign an unusual liability waiver that addresses employment-related issues and rejected the standard liability waiver from physical injury proposed by Mr. Kaepernick’s representatives," his camp said in a statement.

The former player moved his workout to a high school about 44 miles from the Falcons' training grounds.

"Our biggest thing with everything today was making sure we had transparency with what went on," Kaepernick said after his workout. "We'll be waiting to hear from [NFL commissioner] Roger Goodell, the NFL, the 32 teams.

"Ball's in their court — we're ready to go."

On Tuesday, Kaepernick tweeted that he's "been in shape and ready for this for 3 years."


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