Some NFL players and sports analysts have expressed skepticism about the NFL’s intentions in hosting an upcoming workout for Colin Kaepernick, reports the Huffington Post. The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback tweeted on Tuesday evening that he had just been invited to work out for teams on Saturday at the Atlanta Falcons’ facility. Kaepernick, who famously began kneeling during the national anthem at football games in 2016 to protest all forms of social injustice, has remained unsigned by any team since he became a free agent.
“I’ve been in shape and ready for this for 3 years, can’t wait to see the head coaches and GMs on Saturday,” he tweeted. But people who have long advocated Kaepernick’s return to the league are now questioning some of the details surrounding Saturday’s planned workout. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid, a friend and former teammate of Kaepernick, called the NFL workout “disingenuous.”
“At this point, I’ll believe when I see it; at this point, it feels like a PR stunt,” Reid said. “Again, being that it’s on a Saturday, what decision-makers are going to be able to attend that workout?” Many NFL teams have games the next day. During an appearance on ESPN’s “First Take,” former NFL star Damien Woody argued that general managers and head coaches of teams will likely have difficulty attending the workout considering “they’re focused on the actual games on Sunday.”
“If you’re genuinely interested in getting Colin Kaepernick back in the league, why wouldn’t you put the workout on a Tuesday, which is usually the day that teams work out players, to give everyone the opportunity to go to such [a] workout?” Woody continued.
The concerns about Kaepernick’s workout reflect the NFL’s longstanding problem with confronting racial issues and the fact that the league has been widely accused of blackballing Kaepernick for his peaceful protests.
