Morning sports update: Rob Ninkovich explained why Colin Kaepernick wouldn’t be a ‘distraction’ on the Patriots
"I think Bill Belichick is if not the best, one of the best to ever bring a team together no matter who’s on the roster."
After saying that the NFL had “moved on” from Colin Kaepernick as recently as Dec. 2019, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell sounded a different note in an ESPN interview on Monday.
“Well, listen, if he wants to resume his career in the NFL, then obviously it’s going to take a team to make that decision,” Goodell told ESPN. “But I welcome that, support a club making that decision and encourage them to do that.”
Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since the 2016 season when he made his decision to kneel during the national anthem to draw attention towards racial injustice and police brutality.
Rob Ninkovich on Bill Belichick and the Colin Kaepernick: In response to a Boston Globe column from Chad Finn about why the Patriots would actually be well equipped to handle any “distractions” in signing free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick, former New England linebacker Rob Ninkovich said he thinks Bill Belichick would be more than capable at keeping the team focused.
“It’s unbelievable how he’s able to bring a team together and focus on just becoming a team and forgetting anything out side of the building that could distract you and pull you away from what you’re trying to do,” Ninkovich said in an ESPN interview.
Ninkovich, who played for the Patriots from 2009 through the 2016 season, experienced numerous possible distractions in that time. Still, New England made the playoffs in each season, and won two Super Bowls.
“Bringing guys in that could be a distraction, Bill Belichick is able to take the whole team, you come together, you have a team meeting, he explains everything to you and everyone just goes on as regular business,” said Ninkovich.
“Every single day, you come in, you work on your craft and you try to be better individually as a player and try to come together as a team,” Ninkovich continued. “I think Bill Belichick is if not the best, one of the best to ever bring a team together no matter who’s on the roster, no matter what [he has] at his disposal. He’s able to bring guys together from all over different parts. So I think that Kaepernick in a Patriots locker room would not be a distraction.”
More from Boston.com:
- Goodell says he would encourage a team to sign Kaepernick
- Rob Manfred says there might not be an MLB season
- Sports Q: Which trade in Boston sports history would you undo?
- Patriots add Tyler Hughes to coaching staff
- Virus permitting, there are jam-packed months of TV sports ahead
- NASCAR wants 30,000 fans at All-Star race in Tennessee
- Cowboys star Ezekiel Elliott tested positive for coronavirus
- Ben Carson thinks Trump will ‘get there’ on athletes kneeling
The Revolution held a roundtable discussion on racial injustice, including players past and present
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Former Patriot Michael Bennett discussed the NFL, Roger Goodell, and Colin Kaepernick on CNN:
NFL player Michael Bennett on Roger Goodell saying Black Lives Matter: “I think in hindsight we look back and we think, ‘What if we had made this stance three years ago? Could we have stopped more police violence?’ … We’re trying to play catch up and do what’s right.” pic.twitter.com/HesQKNRhqj
— CNN Tonight (@CNNTonight) June 16, 2020
On this day: In 1938, the Red Sox defeated the St. Louis Browns 12-8 thanks to 17 hits from eight spots in the Boston lineup. The ninth spot, occupied by star cleanup hitter Jimmie Foxx, was conspicuously absent from an otherwise impressive box score.
The reason for Foxx — who would smash 50 home runs and drive in 175 RBIs that season — not leading the line that day was simple: he was walked a record six times. No matter the circumstance, St. Louis decided it was better to simply bypass the Boston slugger.
While the Foxx strategy was a sound theory, it fell down when the rest of the Red Sox lineup jumped on Browns pitching. Joe Cronin, Boston’s player-manager, was batting right behind Foxx and went 4-for-6 with four RBIs.
Daily highlight: In Sweden, Malmö FF defeated Mjallby 2-0 on Monday thanks to a pair of highlight-worthy goals from Danish midfielder Anders Christiansen.
PANG! Anders Christiansen smäller dit @Malmo_FF ledningsmål mot Mjällby pic.twitter.com/VpDol15EQc
— discovery+ sport 🇸🇪 (@dplus_sportSE) June 15, 2020
In stoppage time, Christiansen added another beauty:
https://twitter.com/Dplay_Sport/status/1272602518380560386
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