Del Rio critical of Kaepernick’s action
49ers QB should’ve used ‘individual forum’ for protest, coach says
ALAMEDA — Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said Monday he’s never had any issues with players not standing during the national anthem but considers it an organizational expectation.
“It’s never come to a point where I’ve had to address it; it’s always been understood,” Del Rio said. “You stand attention. You pay respect to our flag, our country. That’s always been kind of an assumed thing.”
The national anthem debate has swarmed the NFL since Friday, when 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick detailed his reasons for sitting during the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” which he’s done for all three preseason games this year.
Kaepernick is doing so as a way to protest social inequality in America, and Del Rio, while recognizing the right to do so, said the Raiders prefer those stances be taken up in different forums.
“In America, as individuals, we all have freedoms, and that’s one of the things that makes our country great,” Del Rio said. “For us, I think it’s more about recognizing that you’re part of an organization. You’re representing our organization, and our organization believes that you should pay respect to the flag. Save those individual decisions to express yourself for an individual forum.”
Raiders quarterback Derek Carr called Kaepernick “a great guy” with whom he’s had a good relationship and exchanged texts and phone calls with
THURSDAY’S GAME
Seattle at Raiders, 7 p.m., KTVU over the offseason. While supporting his right to do as he pleases, Carr said he will always stand during the anthem.
“Obviously, we all have the freedom to do as we choose, and that’s just the way he’s choosing to do certain things,” Carr said.
“For me, I’ve had some family that were in the military, and I’ll always stand and just respect it. But if he wants to do it a certain way, he has that right to choose what he wants to do. Whether people agree or not, he doesn’t care; he’s standing up for something he believes, but for me, I’ll stand.”
n There was much for Carr to like from Saturday’s exhibition loss to the Tennessee Titans, but true to form, he spent a lot of time afterward dwelling on his missed pass to Clive Walford.
The Raiders were in position to score a third touchdown of the first half and successfully execute their two-minute offense. But on third-and-2 from the 8-yard line, he sailed a throw high to the wideopen Walford.
“That’s it, you know me,” Carr said when asked if that missed throw weighed on his mind. “It doesn’t matter how good the game was or how well we moved the ball. I’m always going to dwell on what I did wrong, because I want to fix it. That’s just the way that I am. That’s what’s gotten me here so far, and that’s, hopefully, what will keep me here.”
Carr said he’s uncertain if he’ll play in Thursday’s preseason finale against the Seattle Seahawks. He sat out the final exhibition game last season, and the smart money would be on Matt McGloin and rookie Connor Cook handling the duties.
“I will prepare until they say no, or until they say yes,” Carr said. “It doesn’t matter to me. I will prepare like I am, because if I do, I need to be ready. And if I don’t play, I need to be there for Matt and Connor.”
n The Raiders reduced their roster to the leaguemandated 75 players by placing tight end Gabe Holmes on injured reserve and cutting 14 other players.
Defensive tackle Leon Orr is the only cut to have been active in a regular season game for the Raiders. He had five tackles and a pass defense in three games late last season.
The list of cuts also included tight end Colton Underwood, who went from unknown to viral star last week when he made a video asking Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman out on a date. The teammate who helped set him up with Raisman, long snapper Andrew East, was also cut. East is married to another former Olympic gymnast, Shawn Johnson.
Wide receiver Max McCaffrey, the younger brother of Stanford star running back Christian McCaffrey, was also cut. He didn’t have a catch in the preseason and didn’t see the field Saturday.
The remaining cuts are: center Ross Burbank, safety Chris Edwards, safety Chris Hackett, safety Jimmy Hall, wide receiver Joe Hansley, defensive back Tramain Jacobs, linebacker Lenny Jones, wide receiver Nathan Palmer, kicker Giorgio Tavecchio and guard/center Terran Vaughn.
The Raiders must further reduce their roster to 53 players by Saturday.