The owner of the Las Vegas Raiders said he would welcome Colin Kaepernick with open arms to the team despite the certain outrage such a move would bring.
Mark Davis said in an interview Wednesday that Kaepernick was “misunderstood” and that he would welcome him to the Raiders if the team coaches believed he could benefit them.
“Listen I believe in Colin Kaepernick and he deserves every chance in the world to become a quarterback in the National Football League,” said Davis.
“I still stand by it, if our coaches and general manager want to bring him in or want him to be the quarterback on this team, I would welcome him with open arms. I think Colin’s a very misunderstood human being,” he added.
“I’ve gotten a chance to talk to him, I never really knew Colin and I didn’t understand him, and I didn’t really understand the kneeling, what that meant initially,” Davis continued. “Over time I’ve learned a little more about it, and I understand where he was coming from.”
He went on to say that Kaepernick has a “message to society as a whole,” and lauded him for making sacrifices in his fight for “equity and inclusion” in America.
“I stand by that,” Davis concluded.
Kaepernick became a leader of the anti-police movement when he started taking a knee during the performance of the national anthem before NFL games as a form of protest. He was later released by the San Francisco Forty-Niners and has since accused the league of discrimination because no other team has signed him to be their quarterback.
Despite calling the NFL similar to a slave plantation, Kaepernick said recently he would love to play as a backup quarterback to a team and work his way up to the starting position.
Critics of the statement by Davis noted that the Raiders don’t have much a need for a quarterback, so Davis’ statement of support would likely not amount to an actual offer of a position to Kaepernick.
Here’s more on the Raiders and Kaepernick:
Mark Davis: Colin Kaepernick has a “message for society” | Pro Football Talk | NBC Sports www.youtube.com