Baltimore is the birthplace of our national anthem, and the football fans there apparently want no part of any NFL player who disrespects it.
According to Mike Silver of NFL Media, the Ravens “have heard from numerous fans regarding Kaepernick in the last couple of days, many staunchly opposed to his signing”:
This is not an isolated incident. A few months ago, Giants co-owner John Mara told of a similar backlash against the idea of signing Kaepernick from Giants fans:
All my years being in the league, I never received more emotional mail from people than I did about that issue. If any of your players ever do that, we are never coming to another Giants game. It wasn’t one or two letters. It was a lot. It’s an emotional, emotional issue for a lot of people, moreso than any other issue I’ve run into.
Perhaps not coincidentally, another report has emerged claiming that Kaepernick remains committed to standing for the national anthem throughout the NFL season. Though many fans, justifiably, see this more as Kaepernick’s attempt to calm the worry of NFL owners so that he can get a job, as opposed to any genuine change of heart.
Complicating matters further for Kaepernick is the J.D. Power survey that came out earlier this week, which listed the Kaepernick-led anthem protests as the primary reason why people watched less football this year. Had Kaepernick done anything this offseason to show remorse for his protest last year, the way Michael Vick did after his incarceration for dog fighting, then maybe fans would be a bit more tolerant of Kaepernick.
Instead, despite his assurances to end his protest on the field, Kaepernick traveled to Africa to shame the United States over slavery on the Fourth of July, and posted a tweet comparing the police to slave catchers.
In other words, people don’t believe that Colin Kaepernick has changed. Mainly, because he’s given them no reason to believe so.
Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter: @themightygwinn