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Russell Wilson joined Pete Carroll as the latest member of the Seahawks to praise Colin Kaepernick. During his recent press conference, Wilson discussed Kaepernick’s commitment to social justice while also emphasizing his ability on the football field.
Wilson devoted his entire media session to talking about George Floyd, police brutality and protests that are happening across the country. The Seahawks quarterback spent a portion of time reflecting on Kaepernick’s impact on and off the field.
“The reality is also Colin Kaepernick, I think that he is a talented football player,” Kaepernick explained. “I think when he had the chance to play, I said that before. I remember playing against him, the man can play some football, but he stood up for something way more greater than football and that’s people’s lives.”
Wilson released a statement earlier in the week and went into greater detail during his media session. Wilson admitted to having a “heavy heart” after seeing what is happening around the country.
“The reality is that me as a black person, people are getting murdered on the street, people are getting shot down, and it’s not like that for every other race,” Wilson noted, per Seahawks.com. “I think about my step son, I think about my daughter, I think about our new baby boy on the way. It’s staggering to watch these things happen right in front of our faces. So I have a heavy heart right now.”
Wilson on Kaepernick: “He Could Definitely Be on Our Roster”
Wilson was asked if the Seahawks missed an opportunity to sign Kapernick. The Seahawks were one of the few NFL teams to bring Kaepernick in for a visit back in 2017 but ultimately decided not to sign the quarterback. Wilson deferred the question about not signing Kaepernick to Carroll but called the quarterback a “really talented player.”
“That’s really, I think, a Pete [Carroll] question, but I think ultimately, he could definitely be on our roster, for sure,” Wilson admitted. “He can do a lot of great things. He’s a really talented player that’s for sure.”
After meeting with Kaepernick in 2017, Carroll called the former Niner a “starter” and indicated that they declined to sign him since Wilson was on the roster.
“Colin has been a fantastic football player and he’s going to continue to be,” Carroll said in 2017, per Kiro 7 Seattle. “At this time, we didn’t do anything with it, but we know where he is and who he is, and we had a chance to understand him much more so. He’s a starter in this league. We have a starter, but he’s a starter in this league and I can’t imagine that somebody won’t give him a chance to play.”
Carroll Praised Kaepernick For Creating Awareness That All People Are Not Treated Equally
During the Flying Coach podcast the Seahawks coach hosts with Steve Kerr, Carroll praised Kaepernick for bringing awareness to the lack of equality in America despite getting criticized for his stance. Carroll admitted that “we’re not protecting our people.”
“… But what happened from the process is it elevated awareness from people that just took everything away from what the statement was all about, and it just got tugged and pulled and ripped apart,” Carroll noted, via ESPN. “And the whole mission of what the statement was, such a beautiful…it’s still the statement that we’re making right today. We’re not protecting our people. We’re not looking after one another. We’re not making the right choices. We’re not following the right process to bring people to justice when actions are taken. So I think it was a big sacrifice in the sense that a young man makes, but those are the courageous moments that some guys take. And we owe a tremendous amount to him for sure.”
Kaepernick hosted a workout during the 2019 season where several NFL teams were in attendance but the quarterback remains unsigned. Over the offseason, the Seahawks signed Geno Smith and undrafted Washington State quarterback Anthony Gordon.
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