The NFL has a plan to effect positive change in communities, and now we know what that plan looks like.
The league and the Players Coalition — a group that’s been negotiating with the NFL amid the national anthem protests — have been finalizing the NFL’s nearly $100 million proposal that would see the group and the league partner to combat social justice issues, according to ESPN. Unsurprisingly, the proposal already has proven divisive, with some suggesting it’s the NFL’s way of trying to convince players to stop protesting.
On Friday, the league sent various league personnel this memo, which outlines the new initiative:
Make of that what you will.
San Francisco 49ers safety Eric Reid, for one, isn’t buying it.
“(NFL Commissioner) Roger Goodell is trying to make this as easy for the owners to agree to as possible so that—again, their goal is to end the protests,” Reid, who is one of a few players who has withdrawn from the Players Coalition, said Wednesday, via Slate. “He’s trying to make it as easy possible to do that for the owners. He’s going to present them with a proposal saying, ‘Look you really don’t have to do anything. We’re just going to shift this money from this area and just move it here.’ ”
Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins, one of the Coalition’s leaders, already has announced he will cease his own protests.
Time will tell whether the NFL’s plan is genuine or effective. But given the league’s iffy history, it’s probably fair to speculate.
