Loren Elliott/Reuters
The National Football League hired a Washington, D.C., consulting firm to poll the American public about whether Colin Kaepernick should be signed to a team when he was a free agent during the 2017 season, Yahoo Sports reports. The Glover Park Group was hired to conduct the poll, which also asked whether fans believed the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback was a free agent because he kneeled during the national anthem or because of his playing performance. Sources said the poll responses reflected a racial, generational, and political divide, with black and Latino fans saying they were against disciplining players for refusing to stand during the anthem in protest of U.S. police brutality. In October, Kaepernick filed a grievance against the NFL, claiming officials colluded to keep him from playing in the league.