The workout Colin Kaepernick had this past Saturday was different from his previous ones. This wasn’t a workout at some random high school field.

Nope.

It was at the revered “Big House,” Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor. And it took place during halftime of Michigan’s Maize vs. Blue Spring game. Not a bad stage to really garner people’s attention, if you ask me.

Also, his workout wasn’t led by someone unfamiliar to the public. You didn’t have to do a Google search on the guy.

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, Kaepernick’s former coach with San Francisco 49ers, led it.

Before the workout started, I didn’t get Kaepernick’s angle. In fact, I was skeptical. Why is returning to the NFL still on his mind? For what? After how things transpired with the collusion case, what reason is there to go back? Then there’s the fact he hasn’t taken an NFL hit in nearly six years. Who knows how his body would react.

And on top of it all, Kaepernick isn’t hurting for money. Hell, between all of the business moves he’s made since 2016, when he last played, he’s been pretty successful on the field.

Factoring in all of the above, suiting up again for an NFL team seems illogical, right? Then halftime came, and Kaepernick’s work out began. Half way into the workout, it became crystal clear why he still wants to go back to the NFL.

And the reason is that he still has something left in the tank.

Colin Kaepernick isn’t looking to return to the NFL and become a starter. He’s made it clear that he’d accept a backup quarterback role. In the NFL, there are 64 of those jobs between the second and third string quarterback positions across 32 NFL teams.

Kaepernick’s workout on Saturday proved there are not 64 quarterbacks better than him in the NFL right now. He still has the athleticism, zip on his passes, and can still air it out pretty deep. He looked like a kid on the field enjoying playing the game he loves. And those in attendance for Michigan’s Spring game loved what they saw.

With every deep ball and every pass that connected with his targets, Kaepernick drew applause from the crowd. While there are no reports of him receiving any calls yet to go workout for a team, there should be a few dialing him up.

Hell, the Detroit Lions should have.

Before re-signing Tim Boyle or David Blough to deals, anyone should have received a call to workout for them for the QB2 and QB3 spots.

When Jared Goff had to miss a few games due to injury, Boyle stepped in as the Lions’ starter. He didn’t do anything to write home about. And that’s putting it kindly. Ignoring he was winless in his starts, he had three touchdowns to six interceptions. A bunch of his throws were erratic and he didn’t appear to be poised in the pocket.

As far as Blough goes, well, he’s a really nice guy, and… yeah, he’s a really nice guy. In all seriousness, when Boyle struggled, it appeared Blough wasn’t a real thought to be inserted into the game. And with how Boyle struggled, that says a lot.

Colin Kaepernick without a training camp, on paper, is better than those two guys combined. With an offseason workout program, he would definitely surpass them and others. And Kaepernick in a Lions jersey is not as ridiculous of an idea as it sounds.

Sheila Ford Hamp endorsed it years ago under the previous front office/coaching staff.

“If our coaches and general manager all thought it was a good idea to bring him in, then I would support that,” said Ford Hamp. Now back then, under Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn, that’d be super unlikely. With Brad Holmes/Dan Campbell regime, it would at least sound plausible.

However, as The Undertaker said last Friday during his WWE Hall of Fame speech, perception is reality. And the reality is that Colin Kaepernick won’t be a Detroit Lion at the start of next season. One thing for sure is that he isn’t some washed-up quarterback who looks like a shell of himself in a workout. Nor is he a Chase Daniel-type, stealing money from NFL franchises with less than 10 career starts.

He’s simply a guy that belongs on an NFL roster or at a bare minimum, someone who should receive an invite to a training camp. If he doesn’t make the final roster, cut him. After Saturday’s workout, though, if it’s from a performance standpoint, the likelihood of that would be slim.

Follow Kory Woods on Twitter at KoryEWoods.