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It seems that Colin Kaepernick and former teammate Eric Reid, have reached a settlement with the NFL. After months of discussions, the former San Francisco quarterback and current Carolina Panther safety have settled their grievances against the league which alleged collusion against signing Colin to the NFL.
“For the past several months, counsel for Mr. Kaepernick and Mr. Reid have engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives of the NFL,” attorney Mark Geragos and the NFL said a joint statement issued Friday. “As a result of those discussions, the parties have decided to resolve the pending grievances. The resolution of this matter is subject to a confidentiality agreement so there will be no further comment by any party.”
The filed paperwork said the NFL and its owners “have colluded to deprive Mr. Kaepernick of employment rights in retaliation for Mr. Kaepernick’s leadership and advocacy for equality and social justice and his bringing awareness to peculiar institutions still undermining racial equality in the United States.”
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, several team owners and two NFL executives were deposed and asked to turn over cellphone records and emails in relation to the Kaepernick case.
According to ESPN, to prove collusion, according to the league CBA, Kaepernick and Reid would have had to show that a “club, its employees or agents” had “entered into an agreement” to restrict or limit whether to offer them a contract.
The NFLPA on Friday said that while it did not know the details of the settlement, it supported the decision by Kaepernick and Reid.
“We continuously supported Colin and Eric from the start of their protests, participated with their lawyers throughout their legal proceedings and were prepared to participate in the upcoming trial in pursuit of both truth and justice for what we believe the NFL and its clubs did to them,” the statement said. “We are glad that Eric has earned a job and a new contract, and we continue to hope that Colin gets his opportunity as well.”
Written by Clarke Jones