This past week has been a crazy one in the NFL, where football players of all backgrounds have taken to social media to denounce police brutality, with many showing up to respective protests in their area to march for Black Lives Matter.
The real drama unfolded earlier in the week when New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees announced that he was against the peaceful protests that many NFL players had taken in the past, and were planning to take again when they declared that they would be kneeling during the national anthem. Brees said, “I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America.”
For Washington Redskins running back Adrian Peterson, this was a shock to hear, and something that he couldn’t stand behind.
“Once I saw the question that was asked, it was like he diverted and went straight to what he wasn’t going to participate in and what he stood for,” Peterson said, via the Houston Chronicle. “I know Drew Brees. He’s not a racist at all, and I have a lot of love for him, but I think this was a situation where he should have thought things out more and tried to look at things in a different view. He made a comment about what he thinks about his grandfather and his great-grandfather going to war.”
After Brees experienced a significant backlash in the hours after his comments went public, he later apologized for the statement and vowed to better educate himself going forward. He later disagreed with President Trump of Twitter after Trump said that Brees was one of his favorite players and that he supported his cause.
I am a big fan of Drew Brees. I think he’s truly one of the greatest quarterbacks, but he should not have taken back his original stance on honoring our magnificent American Flag. OLD GLORY is to be revered, cherished, and flown high…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 5, 2020
Through my ongoing conversations with friends, teammates, and leaders in the black community, I realize this is not an issue about the American flag. It has never been. We can no longer use the… https://t.co/zcw1NMZF2W
— Drew Brees (@drewbrees) June 6, 2020
Going into the 2020 season, Peterson made it be known that he has little doubt about how players will act before games when the national anthem sounds. There will be kneeling, and they will band together as one, hoping that their message will finally be heard.
“Just four years ago, you’re seeing Kaepernick taking a knee, and now we’re all getting ready to take a knee together going into this season, without a doubt,”
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