Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 21
Kaepernick Repeats 2021 Slave-Trade Comparison for NFL Combine, 9 Years After Last Start
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 21

Kaepernick Repeats 2021 Slave-Trade Comparison for NFL Combine, 9 Years After Last Start

1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 21

Summary

  • Colin Kaepernick again likened the NFL Scouting Combine to a slave auction, saying on Ryan Clark’s “The Pivot” podcast that being told to “strip down to your drawers” made it feel like a “meat market.”
  • The former 49ers quarterback said he lacked the historical perspective to frame it that way in 2011, but now sees the combine’s examinations and evaluation process as reflecting the same power dynamic and intentions.
  • Kaepernick also reiterated that NFL teams’ refusal to sign him after his protests was political, even while acknowledging that players are paid millions of dollars.
  • The remarks revive a comparison he first made in his 2021 Netflix series “Colin in Black & White”; Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since January 2017 and has continued to say he is ready to return.

Insights

Why does a former quarterback continue training daily to rejoin a sports league he publicly equates to a slave auction?
Could the NFL's standardized pre-draft evaluation process actually be masking a deeply dehumanizing system for prospective athletes?
How might racially coded standards secretly influence the way professional football teams evaluate and draft their future leaders?