Photo by Scott Clarke / ESPN Images(NEW YORK) — San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick will stand during the National Anthem next season, ESPN reports.
Kaepernick made headlines and received criticism last year for choosing to kneel during the playing of the Star Spangled Banner. He said at the time that the decision to do so was in an effort to draw attention to social inequality.
Sources told ESPN that Kaepernick doesn’t want his protest to detract from positive change that he believes has been created.
ESPN also says Kaepernick believes the amount of discussion his protest — and that of a number of other athletes in the NFL, NBA, women’s soccer and in high school and college sports — helped to affirm his message.
Kaepernick is expected to opt out of his contract this offseason and become a free agent. A number of teams, including the Cleveland Browns and New York Jets are expected to be in the market for a quarterback.
Copyright © 2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
