Every year a few top college football prospects are picked later than expected in the NFL draft, but Justin Reid’s tumble has raised questions about the Kaepernick effect.
A Stanford safety, Reid fell Friday to the third round, where he was selected 68th overall by the Houston Texans, after being pegged as a first-round talent on many mock drafts.
ESPN analysts asked whether his draft status had been hurt by his brother, free-agent safety Eric Reid, who was Colin Kaepernick’s closest ally during the hotly disputed take-a-knee protests.
Draft guru Mel Kiper, who had Justin Reid ranked 29th, said he was “amazed” that the highly regarded talent was still on the board at the start of the third round.
“I wonder if some of that is with his brother, with that situation,” said analyst Todd McShay, who rated Reid 28th. “He’s a late first-round prospect.”
Eric Reid, a Pro Bowler who went 18th overall in the 2013 NFL Draft, is still waiting for a contract after kneeling for the national anthem in 2017, as he did in 2016 alongside Kaepernick when they played for the San Francisco 49ers.
“Eric Reid is his brother, the safety out of LSU who played for San Francisco, and of course was very active in dealing with Colin Kaepernick in the anthem protest,” said ESPN’s Trey Wingo.
Eric Reid told reporters last month that he would no longer kneel during the anthem, but “you wonder if that has affected his [Justin’s] draft status,” said Wingo.
“And that would be a shame, by the way, if something that Eric his brother did has affected his draft status,” Wingo said. “Judge each and every kid on his own merits. We don’t know if that’s the case but it’s certainly fair to wonder when you look at the talent there.”
Kaepernick, an unsigned free-agent quarterback, has filed a grievance against the NFL alleging that team owners colluded against him after he sat out the 2017 season without a contract.
Justin Reid said last month that he would stand for the national anthem, telling the Guardian, “I’m not as much of a vocal person in that situation. I don’t really like drama. I don’t want to deal with that.”
Eric Reid has said that he plans to channel his social-justice activism in ways other than taking a knee during the anthem.
“I’m just going to consider different ways to be active, different ways to bring awareness to the issues of this country,” Eric Reid said during his brother’s pro day at Stanford.
Interestingly, Texans owner Bob McNair has been among the most vocal critics of the protests.
“The kneeler’s little brother to the Texans?” said one commenter on Pro Football Talk. “McNair just eviscerated the collusion BS.”
Said another: “Let the kneeling begin!”
The 2018 NFL Draft, held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, began Thursday and wraps up Saturday.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.