Reid's complaint focuses on public comments made by President Trump about kneeling playersGetty Images
President Trump is the "crystal-clear target" in free agent S Eric Reid's collusion grievance against the NFL, according to a source cited by Charles Robinson of YAHOO SPORTS. Trump allegedly played a role in "aligning NFL owners against players who had chosen to kneel as a form of silent protest, an act designed by the players to raise social awareness and promote racial equality, among other pursuits." A source said that Reid’s complaint is "anchored almost entirely to allegations of direct, but apparently still undefined, communications between Trump and NFL owners, which caused owners to take adverse action against Reid and other players." The source added that the "direct communications between Trump and NFL owners are alleged to have taken place both privately and publicly." The public communications presumably would "include the litany of statements Trump has made about kneeling players on a wide variety of platforms, including speeches, interviews and his own Twitter account." The private communications "likely include Trump’s verified personal phone calls" with Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones, but could "encompass other conversations that have yet to be revealed." While portions of Reid’s complaint "sound like a rehash of the collusion allegation" filed by Colin Kaepernick, there is one "key difference that could make Reid’s more revealing: It comes in the wake of months of discovery and depositions by the attorneys who now represent both Kaepernick and Reid." This may make Reid's collusion filing "more telling because it has the benefit of being focused through reams of private information that wasn’t available when Kaepernick filed his complaint last October" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 5/3).
SOMETHING TO CONSIDER: FS1's Jason Whitlock said, "Kaepernick and Reid need to end their war on football and we need to stop viewing football as our enemy." Whitlock: "I'm not telling athletes to abandon having social conscience and speaking out to tough social and racial issues. I'm saying don't be foolish in your actions and damage sports culture, the industry that has supported us the longest, most passionately and most effectively" ("Speak For Yourself," FS1, 5/3).
