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Jemele Hill Describes the “Simple” Reason Colin Kaepernick Was Blackballed by the NFL (VIDEO)

Colin Kaepernick, a former NFL quarterback, was blackballed by the league following his 2016 season-long protests against the playing of the National Anthem prior to games.

The 29-year-old, who started 11 games for the 49ers, finished with 16 touchdowns and four interceptions in a strong individual season. In addition, he contributed two touchdowns and 468 rushing yards.

Despite his stature, his choice to protest police brutality by kneeling during the playing of the national anthem turned him into a contentious figure in the sports world. When former ESPN personality Jemele Hill called into Colin Kaepernick’s partner Nessa’s radio program, he directly questioned why the quarterback, a free agent, had been shunned.

“Why is Colin Kaepernick blackballed from the NFL in your opinion?” Nessa asked Hill.

“The thing is, the answer is so simple that people, I think that’s why they reject it,” Hill said.

“It’s not only because he stood up for Black people,” she added. “It’s because he’s somebody that, with the way that the NFL does things, can’t be controlled. So the presence of somebody like Colin in the locker room is a threat. It’s a threat to how they do business because Colin is able to make people think – and that is dangerous – and they don’t want that in their locker room.”

“They are afraid of what his influence would be,” she added later.

Over the past seven years, not many teams have given serious consideration to signing Kaepernick; the Seattle Seahawks brought him in for a visit one year before deciding to go in a different way.

He was a member of the San Francisco 49ers during his final season in the league in 2016–17. He’s probably been blackballed by numerous teams ever then for taking a knee. Claimant that the NFL was being bribed, Kaepernick filed a lawsuit.

Ultimately, a settlement about the lawsuit was reached by Kaepernick and the NFL. He escalated the situation in a Netflix series in 2021 when he compared the NFL draft to slavery.

While even his supporters acknowledge that the ship has sailed, he is still making every effort to rejoin the league.

 

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