| USA TODAY
Ed Reed on messages from the NFL’s final social justice zone: ‘We are aware of these messages … what we are really doing’
SportsPulse: Mackenzie Salmon connected with the security hall of fame Ed Reed to hear his thoughts on the new NFL social justice messages that will be presented in the final zones this year. Reed was very direct about what ‘messages’ mean at this point.
USA TODAY
While reflecting on a season with former San Francisco 49ers teammate Colin Kaepernick, Alex Smith says Kaepernick’s absence from football is a tragedy.
“It is so tragic to look at this. I think (Kaepernick) was ahead of his time, certainly trying to denounce social injustice, especially around police reform,” said the Washington Football Team quarterback on The Ringer’s 10 Questions podcast with Kyle Brandt.
“The country was not ready,” said Smith. “Nobody was ready for this. And he is sitting there trying to tell everyone in a completely peaceful way about some of the things that have been going on in this country for a long time, and seeing the reaction that happened, it hurts. It hurts to look back. The country was not ready for this and it suffered the repercussions. “
When Kaepernick knelt in 2016 during the national anthem to protest peacefully against police brutality and systemic racism in America, he faced a national reaction. Kaepernick became a free agent at the end of the 2016-2017 season after canceling his contract with the 49ers and has not played a casualty in the NFL since.
Smith remembers Kaepernick as a quiet, respectful and talented teammate, saying that “it still doesn’t make sense” that Kaepernick is no longer playing in the league.
Smith, 36, and Kaepernick, 33, played together in San Francisco in 2011 and 2012. Kaepernick was the quarterback for the 49ers in 2012, the year they reached the Super Bowl. In his first NFL playoff, Kaepernick led the 49ers to a victory for the NFC West division against the Green Bay Packers, running for an 181-yard NFL record. Kaepernick led the 49ers to a championship victory against the Atlanta Falcons before falling short in the Super Bowl 47 against the Baltimore Ravens.
“The race he did at the end of last year, when we were together and then went to the Super Bowl … it was crazy to watch,” said Smith. “Truly one of football’s historic races. It’s crazy to advance just a couple after he was out of the league. I couldn’t even understand. I could not understand. It still doesn’t make sense. “
“Obviously, he was incredibly brave and I’m certainly proud of him, for even knowing him and what he did,” said Smith. “He lost his livelihood. Probably one of the guys, I felt like I had the brightest future ahead. A few years later, I think we were all like, ‘He was obviously trying to tell us something and he knew it. ‘To see what happened last year and I hope it will continue to happen in the future. You expect (Kaepernick) to be part of the answer and the solution.
Contact Analis Bailey at [email protected] or on Twitter @Analisbailey.