Where's the leadership?

When was the last time an NFL owner asked your opinion on building your favorite team’s roster?

Houston Texans owner Bob McNair didn’t ask the opinion of anyone in the Flathead Valley when he traded Brock Osweiler to the Cleveland Browns.

Seattle Seahawks owner Paul Allen didn’t send out a survey asking fans who the team should take in the draft or if they should re-sign safety Kam Chancellor.

No one in the Ford family ever approached be about why they employed Matt Millen as the general manager of the Detroit Lions for eight years. I would’ve loved some input.

So, why then, has yet another NFL owner sought public input on signing Colin Kaepernick?

That’s what’s happened twice now, most recently with this week’s reports that the Baltimore Ravens were interested in signing the hot-topic quarterback after they learned of an injury to longtime starter Joe Flacco.

Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti told fans at a public forum that their opinions matter to him about this particular subject.

“Your opinions matter to us,” Bisciotti said. “We’re very sensitive to it, and we’re monitoring it, and we’re still, as (general manager) Ozzie (Newsome) says, scrimmaging it, and we’re trying to figure out what’s the right tact.”

Bisciotti is at least the second NFL owner to claim that fan opinion has swayed his thoughts on this one player. New York Giants owner John Mara said his team ruled out signing Kaepernick after fan input early in the offseason.

But why?

Put aside your thoughts on Kaepernick and what you think of his decision to protest police violence and other civil rights issues by kneeling during the national anthem last season.

That’s a seperate argument.

Why do NFL owners, and for that matter NFL teams, care about the opinion of the fans when putting together a roster?

They literally pay dozens of people to work full-time to evaluate players and their impact on the game and within the systems each team plays.

But the opinion of a couple of fans who take the time to write a letter is more important than the all of the team’s staff? Do you really want your favorite team to crowdsource its roster? Why pay a football staff?

As long as there isn’t a criminal charge or a pending lawsuit against a player, bowing to public opinion makes no sense.

Public opinion is easily swayed.

Most fans mad at the Ravens signing Kaepernick will forget about their differences the second backup quarterback Ryan Mallet starts throwing heaters into the fifth row.

Kaepernick’s fan “problems” go away as soon as he wins games, which is what owners should be concerned about.

Winning games isn’t done through fan opinion. It’s done by compiling top talent. If that’s what the Ravens football staff think Kaepernick is, their owner should trust the people he pays to be right more than the people he doesn’t pay at all.