President Trump supports NFL team signing QB Colin Kaepernick
While taping a segment for ESPN's "Return to Sports" special that aired on Monday evening , NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told host Mike Greenberg he would "encourage" a team to sign former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick this summer.
Kaepernick received another interesting vote of confidence on Wednesday.
President Donald Trump, who has previously ridiculed players and other American athletes who knelt during the national anthem, was asked on Wednesday about Kaepernick rejoining the league:
"If he deserves it, he should. If he has the playing ability," Trump said. "He started off great, and then he didn’t end up very great in terms as a player.
"He was terrific in his rookie year. I think he was very good in his second year. And then something happened. So, his playing wasn’t up to snuff.
“The answer is absolutely I would," Trump said. "As far as kneeling, I would love to see him get another shot. But, obviously he has to be able to play well. If he can’t play well, I think it would be very unfair.”
The 32-year-old Kaepernick hasn't played in the league since the 2016 season, when he knelt pre-game during the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" to protest police brutality and racial injustices.
Chicago Bears defensive tackle Akiem Hicks recently told reporters he believes the league unofficially blackballed Kaepernick because of the polarizing protest movement.
Over the weekend, Trump tweeted he would no longer watch United States soccer matches after the U.S. Soccer Federation repealed a previous ruling that threatened to ban any players who didn't stand during the anthem.
In September 2017, Trump used a derogatory term to describe Kaepernick and other players who knelt:
This led to superstar wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who played for the New York Giants at the time, referencing Trump via a touchdown celebration:
Earlier this month, New Orleans Saints QB and future Hall of Famer Drew Brees, who walked back comments he made about players kneeling after he angered teammates and members of the sports world, responded to President Trump's criticisms that those who don't stand for the anthem are disrespecting the country and/or the flag:
"Through my ongoing conversations with friends, teammates, and leaders in the black community, I realize this is not an issue about the American flag," Brees wrote on his Instagram page. "It has never been. We can no longer use the flag to turn people away or distract them from the real issues that face our black communities."
Following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed African-American man who died while in Minneapolis custody on May 25 after a white officer knelt on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes, players and coaches around the league have insisted they will kneel or otherwise demonstrate this season.
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