EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Jim Harbaugh reportedly tried to get his former quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, to join the Los Angeles Chargers as a coach, not a player.
Harbaugh told USA Today earlier this week that he wanted the former 49ers quarterback to join his staff from his hiring on Jan. 24.
The Chargers coach also dismissed the idea of him joining as the quarterback, even though there is a battle for the backup spot.
"I love Colin, but he's not going to be on the coaching staff, which is set for this year," Harbaugh said. "And he's not going to be playing on the roster either."
It seems like this is not new. Harbaugh wanted Kaepernick to join his staff when he was at Michigan. He visited his former head coach and even threw the ball at halftime of the Michigan spring game of 2022.
Harbaugh has a feeling about him as a coach.
"I have thought that for a long time. Just the respect that I have for the football mind he has and the football man that he is," said Harbaugh when asked what made him believe Kaepernick would make a good coach. "[Late Raiders owner] Al Davis saw something in me that made him think I would be a good coach, and I see those same qualities in Colin. If it is something he chooses."
Kaepernick hasn't played in the NFL since Jan. 1, 2017, but he still has aspirations of playing, as he told Sky Sports News during the recent Paris Olympics.
"It's something I've trained my whole life for, so to be able to step back on the field, I think that would be a major moment, a major accomplishment for me," Kaepernick said. "I think I could bring a lot to a team and help them win a championship."
During his six years in San Francisco, Kaepernick saw success with a 29-16 record after taking over for Alex Smith in Nov. 2012. They went 6-2 with him and made it to Super Bowl XLVII against Harbaugh's brother John's Baltimore Ravens.
Harbaugh left for Michigan in 2014, and Kaepernick stayed with the 49ers. He had a bright spotlight on him in 2016 when he started kneeling during the National Anthem to protest police brutality.
He turns 37 years old on Nov. 3 and hasn't played football for eight seasons, but every year, he reminds everyone he is still training for it.
Harbaugh wants former players on his staff. He has former linebacker Navorro Bowman as his linebackers coach, plus Jonathan Goodwin and Will Tukuafu. He brought in Mike Iupati and Delanie Walker as coaching assistants during training camp. Also, Dashon Goldson is a coaching intern for the season.
There is a way for Kaepernick to get back to the NFL, but this time, it would be helping in the classroom instead of being under center. For now, that won't be the case.