A group of Carolina Panthers huddled up with team owner, Jerry Richardson, to vent their frustrations on Tuesday. Richardson has taken a rigid stance on keeping football and politics separate. His hard nose stance has some players scared to protest because they fear retribution.
Early Tuesday morning, the Charlotte Observer reported that a meeting had been scheduled between Richardson and a group of players. Just a few hours after that report, the meeting took place at the 81-year-old owner's home.
NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reports that team captains (quaterback Cam Newton, outside linebacker Thomas Davis, linebacker Luke Kuechly, tight end Greg Olsen, center Ryan Kalil and safety Kurt Coleman) along with other team leaders were in attendance.
In a statement, Carolina Panthers spokesperson Steven Drummond said, social issues affecting the league and solutions moving forward were discussed. As always, details of the conversation between Richardson and the team remain private.
Richardson one of the last owners to put out a statement
Richardson was next to the last team owner to release a statement after the widespread protests. Jerry Jones was the last owner to release a statement. Jones, however, took a knee with his team (the Dallas Cowboys) on Sunday before their game.
Julius Peppers was the only Panther that didn't stand for the national anthem before they faced off against the New Orleans Saints last Sunday. Instead he chose to remain in the locker room until the "Star spangled banner" was over.
Like many other players, Peppers said he decided to protest after President Donald Trump lashed out at players who don't stand for the national anthem by saying, “get that son of a bitch of the field”, and urging team owners to fire players that protest.
According to the New York Times, the Carolina Panthers had the least number of protesters on Sunday – with only Peppers choosing not to stand for the anthem.
The city of Charlotte grapples with protest after police shootings
It should be noted that former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick kicked off the protest last year in response to growing concerns over police shootings of unarmed black men.
In recent years, the City Of Charlotte made national headlines because of police shooting of an unarmed black men.
Just last year, the city of Charlotte was gripped by protest after the deadly police shootings of Keith Lamont Scott. At the same time, the city was still reeling from the fallout of Johnathan Ferrell’s deadly encounter with Charlotte Mecklenburg Police. Ferrell – a black man – was killed by then CMPD officer Randall Kerrick in 2013. Last September, protesters congregated outside Bank of America stadium during the Carolina Panther-Minnesota Vikings game. That game was declared an extraordinary event, which gives police more latitude to search items like bags and backpacks. Protesters marched, chanted, and held up signs under a heavy police presence.
Cam Newton calls meeting Productive
On Wednesday, Cam newton called the meeting productive.
However, it’s unclear if Newton’s choice of words hint at him – or his teammates – protesting in the future. The quarterback also shared his thoughts on Colin Kaepernick saying, “he [Kaepernick] made the ultimate sacrifice.”
