"All It Takes Is One": Colin Kaepernick Reveals What Could Finally Bring Him Back to the NFL

Colin Kaepernick, 39, still trains every morning for an NFL return© Image via: X/@danfetes

Most athletes hang up their cleats and move on. Colin Kaepernick did not. The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback is 39 now, and he still wakes up each morning with one goal in mind: an NFL snap. He has not played a down since 2016, yet he talks about a return with the calm of a man who sees an open door. His latest remarks on a podcast have football fans asking the same question again. Is a comeback after a decade away even possible, or is this the longest long shot in league history?

Why Colin Kaepernick Believes One NFL Owner Can Change Everything

Kaepernick made his case on The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos, and his message was simple. He never stopped preparing.

"I still train for it every morning," Colin Kaepernick said on The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos. "Absolutely. We have to get one of the owners to crack. And we just gotta find one. All it takes is one."

#Chargers are a team to watch for former #49ers Colin Kaepernick to add depth to their QB room Harbaugh and Kaepernick took the Niners to the Super Bowl Per NBC Sports https://t.co/xIj6lUiN7h

— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) September 23, 2026

His math holds up on paper. Thirty-two owners run thirty-two teams, so he needs only a single yes. He also has a résumé that still carries weight. The San Francisco 49ers picked him 36th overall in 2011, and he guided them to Super Bowl XLVII, where the Baltimore Ravens won 34-31. Years later, former Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said his organization had talked about signing Kaepernick and liked the fit. So interest has existed inside the league before.

Can Colin Kaepernick Really Beat The Odds After A Decade Away From The NFL?

History offers little help. Tom Brady and Brett Favre both returned from retirement, but neither stayed away for ten years. Kaepernick admits that.

"I still train for it. I still prepare for it. I know that is one thing that is in my control. I can't control the actions they take or how they show up. It's been 10 years. Something like that has never been done before. But, if I looked at things from the odds of success, I would have never tried to be an NFL quarterback that played in the Super Bowl. So to me, we are here to beat the odds and break boundaries. So I continue to train and prepare for that day."

Here is the real test. A general manager must weigh age, game rust, and how a quarterback fits the offense, all while answering to fans. Those are football questions, and a strong workout could answer some of them. Others sit outside the film room. Kaepernick settled his collusion case against the NFL in 2019, and a team that signs him would also sign up for the attention that follows him.

Still, the door only needs to open once. Whether any owner walks through it is the story to watch.