Drew Brees made a statement on Wednesday regarding the civil unrest that has swept across the nation in the wake of the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a now-former Minneapolis police officer.
The New Orleans Saints quarterback faced immediate backlash when he appeared on Yahoo Finance’s “On the Move” panel and said:
“I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country. Let me just tell what I see or what I feel when the national anthem is played and when I look at the flag of the United States.
I envision my two grandfathers, who fought for this country during World War II, one in the Army and one in the Marine Corp. Both risking their lives to protect our country and to try to make our country and this world a better place. So every time I stand with my hand over my heart looking at that flag and singing the national anthem, that’s what I think about.
And in many cases, that brings me to tears, thinking about all that has been sacrificed. Not just those in the military, but for that matter, those throughout the civil rights movements of the ‘60s, and all that has been endured by so many people up until this point. And is everything right with our country right now?
No, it is not. We still have a long way to go. But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart, is it shows unity. It shows that we are all in this together, we can all do better and that we are all part of the solution.”
Not only did some of his teammates fire back at him, but so are his opponents for the upcoming season.
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Packers linebacker Za’Darius Smith’s Instagram post was simple but spoke volumes as he posted when the team is set to face off against the Saints during the 2020 season.
