The relation between races is the most intense, most troubling, most divisive concern in our country. You can bet it’s serious on the 49ers. When Kaepernick refused to stand for the anthem at the fourth exhibition game in San Diego — when people knew in advance he wouldn’t stand — Eric Reid kneeled with him. But other 49ers stood at attention, some with hand over heart. When the singer was done, some players applauded.
What does that mean?
It means two camps are forming — have formed already. These are not casual camps. These are not camps debating how to tie shoelaces or discussing the number of angels that can dance on the head of a pin. These camps feel passionately about the anthem and police actions toward African-Americans. Players are on one side or the other, no middle ground, no easy compromises. This is the San Andreas Fault running down the middle of the team.
When things go bad this season — and brother will they — an earthquake is coming.
The 49ers never should have allowed this fault to develop. They had a choice. They should have headed off Kaepernick long ago. Or released him on cut-down day.
Here’s what my friend Ira Miller wrote for The Sports Xchange about Kaepernick and the Niners:
“Football is the ultimate team game, and no matter what you think of a play, a player, a plan or a gesture, success in football requires everybody on a team sacrificing their individuality for the team’s goals. Players rarely are allowed to do what they want if it impacts the team. Simple as that. And there is no question Kaepernick’s sit-down impacts the 49ers. In a game so strongly focused on ‘team,’ players frequently subjugate their own thoughts and beliefs for the team’s benefit.”
