Yesterday, J. Cole took to Instagram to make a statement and share the letter that Colin Kaepernick wrote to the New York Jets after Aaron Rodgers’ suffered his season-ending ankle injury.
J. Cole posted Kaepernick’s letter to the organization along with a long caption, explaining his reasoning in sharing the letter. Cole believed it was important for the world to see the side of Kaepernick he shares in the letter and maybe even give him a better chance of another shot in the NFL.
The caption on J. Cole’s post says: “I asked Colin @kaepernick7 if I could share this letter with the world. He was reluctant. My argument was that I believe the people and all organizations should know the truth about how hard he works and how much he still wants to play. And always has. In the end, he agreed to let me. I wish the @nyjets organization luck. My boy @bas is a big ass fan so I saw the heartbreak of every Jets fan when Arod went down @richeisen. Everyone from players, to coaches, to execs are feeling the pressure I’m sure. I hope y’all can turn it around, and hope there’s a spot out there for my boy Kap. PEACE.”
Kaepernick went from being a top quarterback in the NFL, to opting out of a contract with the 49ers and becoming an un-recruited free agent. In 2016, Kaepernick began to protest police brutality via his platform of football; his famous protest of taking a knee during the National Anthem made headline news and turned many fans and organizations against him.
Since becoming a free agent years ago, Kaepernick has allegedly maintained his football training every morning to keep in shape and hope that he will get another shot soon. Despite this, fans and others were recently speculating his abilities to actually play. After J. Cole retweeted a clip from ‘The Rich Eisen Show’ that was speaking positively of Kaepernick and saying that he deserves another shot as a previous Pro Bowler, a fan replied to disagree and say that Kap was no longer in “playing condition.”
J. Cole continued to vocalize his support for Kaepernick, replying to the fan to say: “And, respectfully lil bro, how could you know what he has in him and what he doesn’t? And, respectfully, you’re 100% right about throwing against the wind and to ghost db’s. But always remember, he’s been doing that every day for 5 years, when the entire world was saying he had zero shot of every playing again. Have you ever wanted something that bad?”
About a year ago, Kaepernick had told the press that the Seahawks organization had given him “positive responses” when he went to visit the organization. He assured the press that multiple trainers have cleared him, saying “my arm’s still alive, I’m still ready to go. More than anything, we’re looking to come in, put some work in and show everyone what I can do. More than anything we want the opportunity to showcase where I’m at.”
This is a similar wish that he voiced in his letter to the Jets, as he offered his wisdom and experience in a number of different ways, including staying off the field during games and leading the practice squad to help train the defense. The letter was rational and pretty convincing. As dated on the letter, the Jets received the proposal from Kaepernick last week. So far it doesn’t seem that there has been any response from the organization.
You can read his letter on J. Cole’s Instagram here.