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By Perry Green, AFRO Sports Editor, [email protected]
Adidas wants to ink an endorsement deal with Colin Kaepernick, according reports. But there’s one catch – he first has to make an NFL roster before they offer him a contract.
According to AZCentral.com, Adidas’ North America Division President Mark King said an athlete like Kaepernick, who “stands up against all odds“ is an athlete they want representing Adidas.
“We love athletes that have a platform to make the world a better place,” King said. “If they’re an activist in a way that brings attention to something that moves the world forward, even if there’s controversy at that moment, we’re really interested in those athletes because I think it represents the world today.”
King said he’s only waiting for Kaepernick to get picked up by a team to make their offer.
“[We don’t want to give the impression that we’re] taking advantage of this noise or interest that he had generated [from protesting],” King said. “If he signs on a team, we would definitely want to sign him.”
But some folks are questioning why Adidas wouldn’t just sign Kaepernick to an endorsement deal without an NFL contract, especially considering how many people believe the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback is being blacklisted by the league for his kneeling protest during the National Anthem.
“Hey @adidasUS, @Kaepernick7 already has a winning team: Social Justice. Make the offer,” tweeted actress Jennifer Beals.
“What teams do Kanye West, Pharrell, Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Kevin Hart, Rihanna, etc play for again? Because they all have had endorsement deals. Smh,” tweeted Andreas Hale, a contributor culture writer for Yahoo and The Root.
“Hey, @adidas, sign @Kaepernick7 whether or not he plays in the @NFL!!,” Bishop Talbert Swan tweeted.
Some folks have even suggested the Adidas doesn’t really want to sign Kaepernick and that they know no team will sign him, so their claim of waiting for him to be signed is merely a empty promise they won’t ever have to fulfill.
Kaepernick reportedly just had a tryout with the Seattle Seahawks postponed by team management because he wasn’t willing to commit to not kneeling in protest should they sign him. On Sunday, he posted a photo of Jackie Robinson, with the Robinson quote, “I cannot stand and sing the anthem. I cannot salute the flag. I know that I am a Black man in a White world.”
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