Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

Denver Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall, who played with Colin Kaepernick at the University of Nevada, believes the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback is being blackballed by the NFL for kneeling during the national anthem last season.

Marshall offered this assessment of why he thinks Kaepernick has yet to find a new team this offseason following the first day of veteran minicamp for the Broncos, per Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post:

Quarterbacks are usually the face of the franchise. So, he’s probably being blackballed. Maybe part of it is owners don’t want their franchise tagged with that. But I still stand by what I said (on Twitter), that he’s the best quarterback in free agency. He’s better than all of those that got signed, the Matt Barkleys, the Nick Foleses. I think that’s a fair assessment, honestly.

"Some guys have done worse, DUIs, domestic violence, and they still got opportunities, you know? Kaep didn’t break any laws," Marshall said. "And so that’s why I don’t understand."

Marshall was one of the NFL players who joined Kaepernick by taking a knee before games during the national anthem last season.

He did eventually decide to stand for the pregame ceremony in November, writing on Instagram he was doing it "because of my hope for what we can become."

Kaepernick spent the first six years of his career with the 49ers. He has been a free agent since March after opting out of his contract in San Francisco and is still in search of a new home for the 2017 season.

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