In Oct. 2017, a month after Trump criticized players for kneeling to protest police brutality, about 30 NFL players, owners and executives sat down to discuss Trump’s remarks towards the players’ movement.
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Trump’s words ignited hostility within the NFL that the league had never experienced and it seems it was time to address the issue. A three-hour conversation, which was meant to be private, has now been obtained by Ken Belson and Mark Leibovich at the New York Times.
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The summit’s conversation consisted of various topics including the status of #ColinKaepernick being black-balled from the NFL for starting the protests. “I feel like he was hung out to dry,” Eric Reid, Kaepernick’s former teammate, said. “Everyone in here is talking about how much they support us. … Nobody stepped up and said we support Colin’s right to do this. We all let him become Public Enemy No. 1 in this country, and he still doesn’t have a job.”
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While most players chimed into Kaepernick’s defense, team owners and execs were more concerned with losing money from their bottom line, (i.e. jersey sales and TV ratings). Others were concerned about attracting Trump’s attention.
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“This kneeling,” New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said. “The problem we have is, we have a president who will use that as fodder to do his mission that I don’t feel is in the best interests of America. It’s divisive and it’s horrible.”
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Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie even called Trump’s presidency “disastrous.” “We’ve got to be careful not to be baited by Trump or whomever else. We have to find a way to not be divided and not get baited.”
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But Bob McNair, Houston Texans owner told players the protesting needs to stop. “You fellas need to ask your compadres, fellas, stop that other business, let’s go out and do something that really produces positive results, and we’ll help you,” said McNair.
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The commotion surrounding the NFL protests has since died down over the past months but at least the discussion is happening.
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