NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell needs to "call in a favor to one of his billionaire owner buddies or GM or coaching friends" and get free agent QB Colin Kaepernick signed, according to Gary Myers of the N.Y. DAILY NEWS. If teams during the '14 NFL Draft "ran away" from taking DE Michael Sam because of his sexual orientation, it is "now clear teams have run away from Kaepernick because of his season long sit down/kneel down during the National Anthem" as a protest of police brutality. Myers: "It’s time for Goodell to step in to save the owners from themselves" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/7). The AP's Tim Dahlberg notes Kaepernick is "not officially blackballed from the league," but he "might as well be as teams in the last few months have signed lesser quarterbacks." Taking a stand "often means paying a price," and in Kaepernick's case, not standing up for the National Anthem "may cost him his career." He "acknowledged as much at the time, knowing what he did would not be popular among the majority of NFL fans." But "take away the controversy, and Kaepernick would seem an attractive candidate for any team looking" for another QB. Dahlberg: "You can kill dogs, be involved in sexual assaults or do any number of bad acts and still get a second chance in the NFL, assuming you have enough talent. Disrespect the flag in a league that sells patriotism at every turn, though, and good luck finding a job" (AP, 6/7).
OWNERSHIP OBSTACLES: ESPN's Adam Schefter noted while some observers believe Kaepernick has the "talent to play in this league ... some owners are opposed to him getting another job." He called it "silly" to think owners are formally keeping Kaepernick out of the NFL. However, he said, "When the idea comes up on teams and it has to go to the next level, and it gets to an ownership level, I think sometimes there’s an owner that says, ‘I don't want him on our team,’ and that is the end of that discussion" ("SportsCenter,” ESPN, 6/6). FS1’s Eric Davis said he did not believe Kaepernick's actions last year "offended the fan base as much … as he offended a larger percentage of the owners, themselves, that write the checks” (“Speak for Yourself,” FS1, 6/6).
LINE IN THE SAND: In N.Y., Shaun King writes he "won't be watching" the NFL this year, as he "can't, in good conscience, support this league, with many of its pro-Trump owners, as it blacklists" Kaepernick. The former 49ers QB is being punished for "taking a silent, peaceful stance against injustice and police brutality in America." King: "It's racism. It's bigotry. It's discrimination. Period. It's not football." Kaepernick "can't get a job in the league because he dared to speak out" and "threaten the ridiculous fragility of the conservative white male fan base" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/7).
