In the aftermath of the controversial Drew Brees comments concerning standing for the National Anthem, the New Orleans Saints quarterback offered an apology via Instagram, saying among other things that "it breaks my heart to know the pain I have caused."
He later added, "I am sick of the way my comments were perceived yesterday but I take full responsibility and accountability."
Brees first got into hot water when conducting an interview with Yahoo Finance. The timing of his comments were especially curious given that cities have been turned upside down by ongoing protests over police brutality and social injustice following the death of George Floyd.
Brees was answering a question in relation to Colin Kaepernick, who in 2016 refused to stand for the nation anthem in an effort to bring attention to the criminal justice system that he felt wasn't fair to black men.
Here were Brees' initial comments:
"I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country," Brees said, adding that he envisions his two grandfathers, who both served in the military during World War II, and the sacrifices made by others during and after when he stands for the anthem before games.
"Is everything right with our country right now? No, it's not," Brees said. "We still have a long way to go. But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart is it shows unity. It shows that we are all in this together, we can all do better and that we are all part of the solution."
Whether the apology will be enough for Brees in the minds of many athletes, including his teammates, remains to be seen. NFL Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed posted a video Wednesday evening where he pulled no punches. Reed began the video, saying, "I see Drew Brees trying to do his part to bring black folk down ... "
On Wednesday evening former Eagle and Brees' Saints teammate Malcom Jenkins posted an impassioned video criticizing the New Orleans quarterback.
Former NFL player and executive Louis Riddick, now an ESPN analyst, had measured comments on Thursday about Brees' apology, but said eventually actions will speak the loudest.
Here were some of Riddick's televised comments on ESPN:
"Many African Americans are expressing authentic pain that goes back hundreds of years and now people are trying to on a global scale draw attention to that, really come up with some policies and practices in terms of how can we correct this going forward," Riddick said.
"How can we all be better and Drew is now trying to take a step to correct what it was he was intending to say but this is really just the start because right now I think we all need to be less concerned with statements and more concerned with the impact we are actually having on this issue. ...
"A statement has been made and you have to give him credit for doing that. He has awareness. He is listening and is aware. He is not engaging in ignorance anymore like it came off yesterday, but now it is all about your impact. Him and Malcolm, him and the rest of the leaders on that football team, him and Sean Payton, him and the city of New Orleans are going to have now bridge that divide that was created by the statement yesterday but this is a good first step."
