Russell Wilson told reporters in a virtual interview on Wednesday that free-agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick should be playing in the NFL.
“I think the reality is that also Colin Kaepernick is a talented football player,” Wilson said. “I remember playing against him. The man could play some football.”
Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since 2016 when he famously sat during the playing of the national anthem and then knelt to protest police brutality and racial inequality in the country. Many players and other athletes soon followed suit. Kaepernick opted out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers following the season and has remained unemployed ever since.
Wilson stated that Kaepernick was trying to do the right thing by kneeling for the anthem despite the backlash he received for his actions.
“The reality was he was trying to symbolize oppression that was going on in America and has been going on for 400 years,” Wilson stated. “The reality is that what Colin was trying to do was try to do the right thing in trying to stand up, figuratively, for what has been going on in America. People may have taken that the wrong way, but he was trying to do the right thing. That’s the bottom line. He stood up in so many amazing ways to really stand up for black lives and what’s going on and the oppression of what’s going on and people being murdered. It’s the right thing that he’s been trying to do, to be honest with you.”
The Seahawks themselves pondered over signing Kaepernick as a backup to Wilson but ultimately decided not to. Wilson thought that Kaepernick could have brought a lot to the Seahawks roster.
“That’s a Pete (Carroll) question,” Wilson responded. “I think ultimately he could be on our roster for sure. He could do a lot of great things. He’s a really talented player, for sure.”
The aftermath of George Floyd’s death has been heated and rambunctious, and it seems that discussions regarding race relations in America will not stop for quite some time.
