Brett Favre thinks Colin Kaepernick’s is on the same level as Pat Tillman.
The comparison made by the former Green Bay Packers quarterback has to do with “leaving” an NFL career behind for a greater good.
“It’s not easy for a guy his age — black or white, Hispanic, whatever — to stop something that you’ve always dreamed of doing, and put it on hold, maybe forever, for something that you believe in,” Favre told TMZ Sports on Sunday.
“I can only think of right off the top of my head, Pat Tillman is another guy that did something similar,” Favre said. “And, we regard him as a hero. So, I’d assume that hero status will be stamped with Kaepernick as well.”
Kaepernick didn’t exactly “leave” the league after the 2016 season the same way Tillman did after 9/11. Favre is correct in thinking of Kaepernick as someone worthy of “hero status” though.
Kaepernick was ostracized from the NFL for peacefully protesting racial injustice and police brutality in the country, by taking a knee during the playing of the national anthem.
Tillman left his career as an Arizona Cardinals safety to join the U.S. Army in 2001. He was tragically killed while on patrol in Afghanistan in 2004.
The former Niners’ quarterback, however, has tried to make his way back in, but teams had essentially refused to sign or see him workout unless he agreed to end his protest.
In November, after a series of events involving Jay-Z’s partnership with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the league, the NFL scheduled an impromptu workout for Kaepernick and invited all teams to come watch. It seemed more like a stunt than a real chance as members of the press were barred from seeing the workout, teams were in the middle of the season, scouts were out at college games and Kaepernick was only given a two-hour window to decided whether he wanted to go through with it, among other issues.
Amid the recent and increase in national and international protests calling for exactly what Kaepernick has been, the NFL decided to change it’s stance.
Earlier in the month, Goodell admitted the league was wrong not to listen to its players to enforce “no kneeling” policy and later encouraged teams to sign Kaepernick.
It’s not a mistake to think Kaepernick wouldn’t still be an effective QB today. He did lead the Niners to two back-to-back playoffs, including a Super Bowl run. He never stopped training and Favre knows all this, too.
“I thought he was a dynamic player when he was playing in his prime,” Favre said. “He’s still young and hasn’t been hit in several years, so there’s no reason to think that he’s lost that much of a step.”
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