Colin Kaepernicks case against the NFL for collusion will be very difficult to prove, according to many legal experts. However, according to Yahoo Sports, a major portion of the Kaepernick lawsuit will be Donald Trumps public statements and his connections to NFL owners.
Athletes vs Trump
As was widely reported, seven NFL owners donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration, including Houston Texans owner Bob McNair, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan.
The grievance, which was filed early in October, claims that team owners colluded to prevent him from playing in the NFL since he opted out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers earlier this year. His legal team will seek to discover evidence of Kap-related communications between team owners, as well as correspondents between owners and the POTUS.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, and team officials with the Seahawks, Titans and Ravens have all been named .
Back in March, Trump told a crowd in Louisville, KY; It was reported that NFL owners dont want to pick him up because they dont want to get a nasty tweet from Donald Trump. Do you believe that? I just saw that. I just saw that.
Colin Kaepernick has ‘virtually’ no case against NFL for collusion | First Take | ESPN
First Take’s Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman are joined by Will Cain who says Colin Kaepernick has “virtually” no case against the NFL for collusion.
According to Yahoo! Sports, that comment came a day after Robert Kraft and the president shared a flight on Air Force One from West Palm Beach, Fla and Washington, DC.
Sports Illustrated legal analyst Michael McCann wrote:
“An NFL owner agreeing with Trump, or even communicating with Trump about Kaepernick, would not constitute collusion under the CBA,” McCann wrote. “Trump is an external actor for purposes of collusion analysis. That is, he is not a party to the CBA and is therefore not governed by it.
“If, however, multiple NFL owners have communicated through Trump about Kaepernick, perhaps there would be evidence of collusion. But Trump would not be the collusive party it would be the owners.”
At this point, Kaps NFL career is in limbo, his case is being labeled as difficult to prove at best, and the league appears to be in the process of co-opting the players protest movement that he started by incorporating social activism into its rainbow of charitable causes.
Meanwhile, a parade of marginal quarterbacks, at best, have been signed across the league since Kaepernick became a free agent.
