Colin Kaepernick, who last played professional football in 2016, will likely have his first workout since his NFL exile with Las Vegas Raiders, league sources told ESPN.

This would also be the first time he visits with a team since he flew to Seattle to meet with the Seahawks in May 2017 before they passed on the opportunity to sign him.

In 2016, Kaepernick started kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice. He has not played in the league after leaving the San Francisco 49ers.

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“That 2016 season, my last year, my teammates voted me most courageous and inspirational player,” Kaepernick said in an appearance on the I Am Athlete podcast in April. “So, when you’re talking about the people that are in the building, that has never come out that I’ve been a distraction. That’s never come out that I’ve been an issue for the people I’ve played with.”

Kaepernick, who has fronted several high-profile advertising campaigns, says he has kept himself in shape.

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“So if you’re talking about the business side, it shows [it’s] beneficial,” he told the I Am Athlete podcast. “If you’re talking about the playing side, come in, let me compete. You can evaluate me from there. The NFL’s supposed to be a meritocracy. Come in, let me compete. If I’m not good enough, get rid of me. But let me come in and show you.”

The NFL had said it encouraged teams to take a look at Kaepernick. 

The Raiders are one of the more progressive franchises in the conservative world of the NFL. They have broken stereotype by hiring the team’s first Black head coach and a female chief executive.

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Since his exile, Kaepernick has not signed a contract with any team. He has also not received a workout until the one that now is planned.

Mark Davis told ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez in June 2020 that he would give his “blessing” if the Raiders‘ front office or coaches wanted to add Kaepernick.

“I believe in Colin Kaepernick,” Davis said. “He deserves every chance in the world to become a quarterback in the National Football League. I still stand by it. If our coaches and general manager want to bring him in or want him to be the quarterback on this team, I would welcome him with open arms.”

The Raiders recently signed starting quarterback Derek Carr to a $121.5M, three-year extension.