Jenkins said that he is cautiously optimistic about the deal based on Jay-Z's social justice workGETTY IMAGES
Eagles S Malcolm Jenkins does not know what the Jay-Z-NFL partnership "will look like, or how exactly Jay-Z will help further the efforts he and his fellow players have pursued," but because of the rapper's "track record of charitable work, Jenkins is willing to give him a chance," according to Mike Jones of USA TODAY. Jenkins said the "timing and the way [the deal] was rolled out was a little questionable," but "time will tell what that will look like." Jenkins: "Jay-Z has proven enough throughout his lifetime of giving back, kicking in doors and bringing other people with him, we shouldn't expect anything different." Jenkins understood the "frustration that Jay-Z sparked when he said 'we're past kneeling,' which led some to believe that the rapper was minimizing" Colin Kaepernick's efforts. But Jenkins "offered cautious optimism that Jay-Z meant for that statement to come across differently." He said, "He didn't mean that we don't need to kneel anymore or we should stop kneeling or anything like that. I think he was saying there has to be a Plan B. The end goal is not to just kneel forever" (USA TODAY, 8/22). THE RINGER's Micah Peters wrote with the Jay-Z-NFL alliance, the league gets a "credibility boost from rap's biggest Big Brother, who could, in theory, single-handedly shift the tide of public opinion in its favor." What is "less clear" is what Jay-Z will "get out of the deal, what his plan is, and what his motivations are" (THERINGER.com, 8/21).
QUESTIONS ABOUND: In Louisville, Ricky Jones wrote under the header, "As Jay-Z Partners With The NFL, It's Clear He's OK With Leaving Colin Kaepernick Behind." Jay-Z has gone from "advising other black entertainers not to participate in the NFL's Super Bowl halftime show to now taking money to help organize the shows himself and supposedly carry the 'social justice' baton forward." One "cannot neatly fit" Jay-Z into the "'racial sellout' category in that he has done a good deal of justice work." However, in this case, it also is "difficult to argue against observations that he is, nonetheless, currently consenting in the Gramscian sense" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 8/21).
STICKING TO THE BLUEPRINT: A MIAMI HERALD editorial states that Dolphins coach Brian Flores "seemingly dismisses" WR Kenny Stills' "public lament" over team Owner Stephen Ross' fundraiser for President Trump. Flores loading up the team's "practice playlist with songs by Jay-Z" looked like a "smirking taunt, giving the back of his hand to a real-life American plague" (MIAMI HERALD, 8/22).
