O.J. Simpson condemned former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick for refusing to stand during the national anthem before games.
“I think Colin made a mistake,” Simpson said in an interview with the Buffalo News published Friday. “I really appreciate what he was trying to say. I thought he made a bad choice in attacking the flag.”
“I’m a firmer believer of doing what you think is right, but I would always stand for the flag,” Simpson continued. “When he did it the first time … I thought, ‘Well, you took a gamble, and I give you credit.’ But it was him continuing to do it where he made the biggest mistake.”
Kaepernick took a knee during a game in early 2017. The move was meant to raise public awareness of police brutality. He continued the protests through the season and was later dropped by the San Francisco 49ers.
Simpson, a former NFL player who was famously acquitted of the killings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman, more than 20 years ago, defended law enforcement officers, saying a few incidents that appear to be racially motivated should not affect the agency as a whole.
“I grew up at a time when [church] deacons were in the KKK. I don’t disrespect the Bible because of those guys,” Simpson said. “The flag shouldn’t be disrespected because of what cops do. The flag represents what we want America to be.”
Simpson has been serving parole since July when he was released from prison after serving nine years in a 33-year sentence for committing a robbery in Las Vegas.
