Former NFL player turned social justice messiah Colin Kaepernick scored big on Friday as the league once again folded and reached a settlement in the collusion grievance that was filed in 2017. According to Kaepernick, ex-teammate Eric Reid and the player’s union, the NFL had engaged in a sinister conspiracy that effectively blackballed him after his national anthem protests launched a movement.
Having done away with the nuisance of the protests after a $90 million hush money payment, the league bounced back in 2018 with a season that was largely free from the divisive controversy that had plagued it and sent TV ratings into an unprecedented spiral.
There was still the lingering Kaepernick problem though and on Friday, the league paid him off as well.
Kaepernick reaches settlement with NFL in collusion case https://t.co/JgkNSFJQsX pic.twitter.com/0yO7oErxTA
— The Hill (@thehill) February 15, 2019
Via The Hill, “Kaepernick settles collusion case with NFL”:
Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid have reached settlements with the NFL over their cases alleging collusion, their lawyers and the league announced Friday.
Both men alleged that the NFL and team owners colluded to freeze them out of the league for kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice and police brutality. The players’ lawyers and the league said they have decided to resolve the players’ grievances.
“For the past several months, counsel for Mr. Kaepernick and Mr. Reid have engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives of the NFL. As a result of those discussions, the parties have decided to resolve the pending grievances,” attorneys Mark Geragos and Ben Meiselas said in a joint statement.
According to a statement issued by Kaepernick’s attorneys:
For the past several months, counsel for Mr. Kaepernick and Mr. Reid have engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives of the NFL. As a result of those discussions, the parties have decided to resolve the pending grievances. The resolution of this matter is subject to a confidentiality agreement so there will be no further comment by any party.
The NFLPA joyously crowed about the win on Twitter:
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) February 15, 2019
Details of how much that Kaepernick raked in are unknown due to the confidentiality agreement but it is rumored to be in the $60-$80 million range.
Number NFL team officials are speculating to me is the NFL paid Kaepernick in the $60 to $80 million range.
— mike freeman (@mikefreemanNFL) February 15, 2019
But was it truly a victory for Kaepernick or did it just expose him as a massive fraud who masterfully exploited the “woke” media and racial grievance mongers to essentially extort his fortune from the league and when he made bank, he effectively sold them all out.
Sports talk radio host Clay Travis of the popular Outkick The Coverage blog and nationally syndicated show blasted Kaepernick as a phony.
Gold. pic.twitter.com/O0LLYY3DWI
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) February 15, 2019
In the end, like most people who claim to be motivated by social justice, Colin Kaepernick was all about the money. NFL gave him a rounding error on their balance sheet to settle all his claims against them forever. They paid him money to shut up and he took it.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) February 15, 2019
This won’t likely sit well with some of the more die-hard elements of Kaepernick’s cheering section who will claim victory against the oppressive white NFL owners who many have compared to slave owners but now are left with the sinking feeling that they have been played for chumps by a guy whose animosity toward the police and America, in general, were secondary to his greed.
Now that the lawsuit has been settled the big question is will a team sign him to a contract. It was just reported that Kaepernick demanded $20 million to suit up in the new Alliance Of American Football so it’s probably unlikely that he has any desire to get back under center.
For one thing, it would nullify his gig as a civil rights martyr as Travis points out:
I wouldn’t be surprised if an NFL team also signs him to a back up deal. But if Kaepernick takes a job the NFL will have brilliantly ended his relevance forever. Without martyrdom Kaepernick is just another mediocre quarterback — Blaine Gabbert with an afro.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) February 15, 2019
Hey, give Kaepernick and his legal team credit for understanding just how squishy and spineless that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is and playing him like a Stradavarius. At the end of the day, he’s just a younger, more athletic version of Al Sharpton but now he’s rich.
