The Carolina Panthers did what no NFL team was willing to do last season and signed then-free agent safety Eric Reid to a contract during the bye week.
Reid, like Colin Kaepernick, had kneeled during the national anthem to protest racial injustice and police brutality. And despite his Pro Bowl pedigree, the free-agent market was mostly quiet for the former 49ers defensive back. He was a part of Kaepernick’s since-settled collusion grievance against the NFL.
With the Panthers the featured team in Amazon’s All or Nothing, we got to see what was said behind closed doors that led to the Reid signing. Cam Newton, in particular, was concerned about potential “distractions” that could come with Reid’s inclusion on the team.
He voiced that concern to head coach Ron Rivera in a meeting.
Newton said:
“My thing is this — and I’ll let you talk — we don’t want no outside distractions.”
Rivera agreed with Newton before mentioning how new owner David Tepper wanted to give Reid a “forum” to hold press conferences “away from this place” like City Hall. Reid would continue his protests of racial injustice during the regular season.
Publicly, though, Newton took a different approach. He told reporters during a press conference that he knew that Reid wouldn’t be a distraction.
After the season, Reid signed a three-year, $22 million contract with the Panthers.
