Andrew Brandt on Colin Kaepernick and the Business of the NFL

Andrew Brandt on Colin Kaepernick and the Business of the NFL

Andrew Brandt on Colin Kaepernick and the Business of the NFL

The former Packers executive talks activism in the NFL and the NBA.

Dave Zirin
Copy Link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
Bluesky
Pocket
Email

This week, we talk all things NFL—plus a new twist on the Lebron-Jordan debate—with Andrew Brandt, columnist for The MMQB and The Athletic and the host of the Business of Sports podcast. Brandt details his time as an executive with the Green Bay Packers and dishes on whether or not the NFL is blackballing Colin Kaepernick.

Dave has some Choice Words for how LeBron James has, once again, flipped the script in terms of what we expect from our superstars. Our Just Stand Up Award goes to Steve Kerr, head coach of the Golden State Warriors, for being far more presidential than the current person residing at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Our Just Sit Down Award goes to the racist fans who thought it was a good idea to yell at Washington Capitals’ Devante Smith-Pelly. As we move on from the football season—and further away from when Colin Kaepernick last played—we urge you not to forget the man who started this revolution of athlete-activists!

Andrew Brandt
Columnist | The MMQB, The Athletic
Follow on Twitter @AndrewBrandt

Dave Zirin
LeBron James Flips the Script—Again

Support The Nation’s June Fundraising Campaign

With the midterm elections now firmly upon us, the question is whether Democratic candidates will do more than merely occupy ballot lines as mild alternatives to the red-hot crisis that is Donald Trump.

As Trump spends over $1 billion a day on a globally destabilizing war on Iran and admits that he doesn’t “think about Americans’ financial situation,” millions across the country are struggling with the surging costs of essentials. Democrats must seize this moment and advance bold, small-“d” populist ideas—not settle for cynical caution that once again snatches defeat from the jaws of victory.

The Nation elevates progressive ideas, movements, and elected officials achieving real change across the country into the national conversation. At the same time, our journalists are exposing how crypto and AI-funded super PACs are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to knock out candidates they oppose, reporting on the devastating impact of the Supreme Court’s evisceration of the Voting Rights Act, and sounding the alarm on attempts by red states to quickly redraw electoral maps, disenfranchising Southern Black voters.

We can play this critical role because of support from readers like you. This June, we’re raising $20,000 to power The Nation’s independent journalism in the run-up to November’s immensely consequential elections.

It’s in our power to build a more just society, and your support at this critical moment brings us closer to that bold vision. I hope you’ll donate today.

Onward,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editor and Publisher, The Nation

Dave ZirinDave Zirin is the sports editor at The Nation. He is the author of 11 books on the politics of sports. He is also the coproducer and writer of the new documentary Behind the Shield: The Power and Politics of the NFL.


Ad Policy
x

Latest from the nation

Today 4:59 am

Saving the Scarlet Macaw in Narco Country

Roberto Lovato
Yesterday 1:31 pm

Celebrating America Shouldn’t Be Such a Partisan Task

Richard Kreitner
Yesterday 11:40 am

Are Democrats Finding Their Spines?

Chris Lehmann
Yesterday 11:09 am

Hillbilly Algae

Steve Brodner
Yesterday 10:25 am

Establishment Democrats Are Embracing Loserdom

Jeet Heer

editor's picks

VIDEO: People in Denmark Are a Lot Happier Than People in the United States. Here’s Why.

The Nation

Historical Amnesia About Slavery Is a Tool of White Supremacy

Mychal Denzel Smith