Brees draws criticism over anthem comments
Drew Brees was criticized sharply by fellow high-profile athletes including some of his own teammates on Wednesday after the Saints’ quarterback reiterated his opposition to kneeling during the national anthem.
In an interview with Yahoo, Brees was asked to revisit former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s 2016 protest against police brutality against minorities, in which Kaepernick knelt during the national anthem before games.
“I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States,” Brees began, adding that the national anthem reminds him of two grandfathers who served in the armed forces during World War II. “In many cases, it brings me to tears thinking about all that has been sacrificed, and not just in the military, but for that matter, those throughout the Civil Rights movements of the ’60s, and all that has been endured by so many people up until this point.”
Critical responses to Brees’ statements appeared on social media from major professional athletes including the Lakers’ LeBron James and Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins.
Jenkins delivered an emotional response on a video posted to social media.
“If you don’t understand how hurtful, how insensitive your comments are, you’re part of the problem,” Jenkins said.
Jenkins was Brees’ teammate when the Saints won the Super Bowl in the 2009 season, but spent the last six seasons with the Eagles before returning to New Orleans this offseason.
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers also went on social media to add his voice about racial inequality and police brutality.
Rodgers shared an image from a 2017 game against the Bears, when the Packers locked arms in a show of solidarity during the national anthem after Kaepernick and other NFL players had taken a knee in protest before games. He added the text:
“A few years ago we were criticized for locking arms in solidarity before the game. It has NEVER been about an anthem or a flag. Not then. Not now. Listen with an open heart, let’s educate ourselves, and then turn word and thought into action. #wakeupamerica #itstimeforchange #loveoverfear #solidarity #libertyandjusticeforall #all”
Shortly after Rodgers posted, several teammates and former Packers players LeRoy Butler and Dorsey Levens supported him with comments or on their own Instagram story.
Wilson: ‘I don’t want to talk about football’
Speaking to the media for the first time since the end of last season, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson didn’t care to talk about the game that’s helped make him famous.
“To be honest with you, I don’t even want to talk about football right now,” Wilson said during a video conference. “You know, that’s a thing that I don’t even know what that looks like down the road or anything else. I think that none of that matters. I can’t compare football to life and what the black community is going through right now.”
Wilson said his great-great grandparents were slaves and that he has always understood “that racism is real.” He recalled how, while growing up in Richmond, Virginia, his father would warn him to not put his hands in his pockets when he stepped out of his car at gas stations.
Prescott pledges $1M for police training
Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott pledged $1 million “to improve police training and address systematic racism through education and advocacy in our country.”
“As our communities take action, protesting and fighting for the justice of George and every black life, I am with you!” Prescott wrote in a Instagram post.