NFL Commish Calls Trump Comments ‘Divisive,’ ‘Disrespectful’ (VIDEO)


NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has some strong words for President Donald Trump. Trump held a rally Friday in Alabama, where he called NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick a “son of a bitch” for kneeling during the national anthem.

Kaepernick kneels to raise awareness to the systemic violence against African Americans in the United States. Despite nearly winning the Super Bowl in 2013, Kaepernick is currently not on an NFL roster. Many owners have stated the controversy that would accompany signing Kaepernick would not be worth the headache.

Goodell responded to the comments without even mentioning President Trump, but it is obvious what he was getting at:

“The NFL and our players are at our best when we help create a sense of unity in our country and our culture. There is no better example than the amazing response from our clubs and players to the terrible natural disasters we’ve experienced over the last month.  Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities.”

Trump’s full quote on Kaepernick, from his Alabama rally, is below:

Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, they say: ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now!’ Out – he’s fired. FIRED!”

The crowd then begins chanting “USA! USA!” Because of course they do. Trump continues:

You know, some owner’s going to do that. He’s gonna say: ‘That guy who disrespects our flag – he’s fired. And that owner – they don’t know it; they’re friends of mine, many of them – they don’t know: they’ll be the most popular person, for a week, they’ll be the most popular person in this country.”

Several owners have passed on Kaepernick, with a few admitting it is for that very reason.

After blasting Kaepernick, Trump decides to talk about how penalties are ruining the game of football. Meanwhile, hurricanes continue to ravage the Caribbean and east coast, and the GOP is once again trying to rip health care away from millions of Americans. What a presidential speech. Watch the relevant clip of it below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0v60_efSCA

Featured image vi Flickr user Zennie Abraham / CC BY-ND 2.0.