Friends,
Commish has been a football fan since he came out of the womb. "I love Brett Favre" wasn't my first sentence, but it was close.
Football has given me fandom in the form of joy, sadness, angst, and elation, but it's also taught me about life outside the lines.
Favre's Monday Night Football performance after his dad passed away taught me about processing grief. Randy Moss taught me about outliers and the difference between potential and actualization. The sheer fact of the Packers' existence in the 21st century taught me about story-building, identity, and business-community harmony.
Football is America's sport. In many ways, football is America. And it's that way because we chose football and the players who both captivate and teach us (and, yes, sometimes anger us, too).
We didn't choose the owners. We didn't choose Goodell. We didn't choose our President based on his NFL views. And thus, in light of a Week 3 that's put the NFL squarely in the middle of a divided country, Commish humbly suggests that we don't let these people control our football narrative.
Colin Kaepernick didn't take a knee to start a freedom of speech inferno. He didn't take a knee to begin a conversation about NFL unity. And he certainly didn't take a knee so that Jerry Jones, Shahid Khan, and Arthur Blank could link arms with their teams in made-for-TV moments and release statements about the NFL being a force for good.
Kaepernick took a knee so you'd talk to your friends about racial inequities in America. So you'd reflect on what being born in America means for people unlike you. So that, even if you vehemently disagree with his form of protest, you seek to understand the forces that would drive someone of his stature to take such a risk in the first place.
Kaepernick made a bad business decision so he could further our social consciousness. NFL owners - who won't hire Kaepernick - are trying to make a good business decision at the expense of our social consciousness.
I hope we can get back to football for football's sake. I'm guessing you hope so, too. And, ironically, the fastest way there might be putting the focus back on Kaepernick and his original intent. Talk about racial inequality in America, but mostly just listen - especially to black voices with whom you might not typically engage.
Then ignore the false narratives, ignore the owners' and the President's comments, ignore the endless ESPN drone, crack open an ice cold Bud Light Lime, and watch some damn football.