Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s decision to take a knee was discussed during the jury selection process in the NFL’s Sunday Ticket Trial. NBC Sports‘ Mike Florio is doing the lord’s work by going through a transcript of the Sunday Ticket trial and highlighting the juicy parts.
The league lost the Sunday Ticket trial
As previously discussed on GH, the league lost the Sunday Ticket trial. The jury ultimately decided that the league violated anti-trust laws by creating a monopoly of game telecasts with Direct TV, CBS, and Fox. The verdict put the NFL on the hook for over $4.7 billion. Due to the case being anti-trust, the number would triple to over $14 billion.
The league plans to appeal, and a business-friendly U.S. Supreme Court will likely hear the case—if they have to appeal at all. On July 31, Judge Philip Gutierrez could render a much different verdict if he thinks the jury wasn’t capable of making a sound decision.
There is good reason to think finding a competent jury was difficult for the case. Florio pulled several quotes during the jury selection process, and there appears to be heavy anti-NFL sentiment in Los Angeles, a city that saw their Rams win a Super Bowl in the 2021 season.
Former San Francisco 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick’s name was brought up
One juror was upset about Colin Kaepernick using NFL telecasts to protest:
“I stopped watching the NFL,” the prospective juror said in response to a question sparked by his reference to Colin Kaepernick on the jury questionnaire. “I know it’s not related to this, what we’re talking about, but, you know, I did — I’ll be honest — send a scathing e-mail to the NFL and told them that I would never talk with — or never watch or support the NFL in any way ever again.”
The judge was curious about what the prospective juror had said: “And did you feel that way — I have a question about that. Did you feel that they — I guess, why did you feel that? Did you feel that way because you thought they should have punished Mr. Kaepernick?”
“I think the act of kneeling during the national anthem is un-American, and I also think that it was un-American for nothing to be done to Mr. Kaepernick,” the prospective juror said. “From the NFL standpoint. And I understand that I — at least I think my understanding is that Mr. Kaepernick doesn’t work for the NFL anymore. I don’t know. But I just completely stopped watching [the] NFL.”
The prospective juror’s reasoning is curious, given the NFL had to settle with Kaepernick because league owners colluded to keep him out of the NFL.
Many prospective jurors had issues with the NFL
Other prospective jurors thought the trial’s eventual outcome was obvious and had to be excused from serving on the jury, just from the judge’s explanation of the case that the NFL hiked up prices for greed.
The NFL’s plot to grab as many dollars from its fans as possible with Sunday Ticket is/was clear to anyone who checked the subscription price. It was clear to Disney’s ESPN, who was willing to offer a $70 subscription service.
This is an important issue for a league that depends on public funds and subsidies to make their organizations and stadiums run. The outcome via the jury and the sentiment from citizens is another reason the league should think twice about putting more playoff games on Peacock.
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23 Comments
Many NFL fans missed the WHY he kneeling… It was because what’s being done to the black men of America the lack of respect…. Most is black men believed in America today that the blackmen of to are all guilty till proven offer wise and that’s ALL BLACKMEN. Young or old!!!
They didn’t miss it they just wanted an excuse to complain . People often turn a blind eye to facts. Because it doesn’t benefit them. Just because he knew doesn’t mean he doesn’t believe in the National Anthem. He was stating why okay it and America itself is disrespecting it by being injustice to Black Men when you sing about All but you as the American ppl don’t .
Specifically what does this USA do to disrespect black men young and old as you stated??? I grew up in Bedsty and I’m 67yrs old so explain it to me please.
That’s a joke right? Do you live under a rock?
They could care less. They hate the fact that s Black/Bi-racial man used his platform to protest albeit peaceful. The old adage shut up and play ball applies here. He didn’t interrupt the national anthem, he didn’t do it in the middle of a game. They have hate because they could care less about police brutality, unequal treatment of blacks and/or killing of blacks because it does not apply to them. Never had. ✊🏾
That’s a lot of people not just black, there’s been a lot of poor white folks treated just as bad or worse then blacks,they just can’t yell racist!
Stop Bro! You still skating the true facts 💯!
I Wish the Black Lives Matter movement would have included “,too” as well as as much as equal to! If black lives do not matter, then no lives matter I am white I hate white fragility! Colin was right!
NFL Sunday ticket should only be 50.00 for a subscription
AMEN AMEN
You’re missing the point, he was working. He should have done his Protest on his own time like every other normal person.
Yes, on the job. Plus, he called all LEOs slave catchers and praised Castro. Toxic stuff. 50 other women layers who only sat faced no problem.
50 other players..
The point is,”Liberty and justice for all.” People have the right to feel what they see and live. But there are people who chose to be ignorant about the “justice” part of the National Anthem. There really hasn’t been any justice. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a person of color or not. Justice is slowly making it’s way up.
He capernick had every right to protest but not on the job. He was a highly paid athlete, one of the top percent. He never knew injustice himself. Back to where he protest, on the field whareing his business clothes is not a place to get on his soapbox. He should have done it in the parking lot or sidewalk like anyother protester. Doing it at work created a cancer and the 49ers got rid of him like anyother disgruntled employee and the rest of the league saw the writing on the wall, he was not go I d enough to put up with his BS.
The NFL turned a blind eye to that white kicker who made those bad a—- comments about women. Again two-tier system.
Drastic moves is what help the civil rights movement on national TV at a big event that brought exposure to people that otherwise would not have known or paid any attention to what the cops were doing to young black men to me if you are against what he did you are against America cause it’s the land of equality its the land of freedom of expression i support what he did and where he did it at Wake Up
I totally agree with Colin. Enough is enough.
It’s still the same old injustice if white your right, if your black your wrong, It’s been that way all of my life and I’m a 66 year old military veteran whites set the standard for life and the way we live ,wheather you choose to believe it or not
They stromed the capital , life’s lost. property destroyed, let’s move on huh, nothing to see here , a black man takes a knee & hell, it’s tome to go to war…. talking about some B. S. !!!
But it’s ok to turn the flag upside down & burn it,
Half of these responses are the reason(s) why we have the problem(s) we have in the so called united states.
Take a knee