Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid, the NFL stars who alleged the league’s teams colluded to keep them off the field after they led protests during the national anthem, will receive less than $10 million to settle grievances with the league, according to people briefed on the deal.
Neither the NFL nor the attorney representing both players gave comment to the Journal on the reported settlement. There is a confidentiality agreement in place to keep both sides from discussing the deal that was reached last month.
The Journal notes that had Kaep prevailed in his grievance, the collective bargaining unit the league has with the players would have provided for him to receive damages worth up to three times what it was determined he lost as a result of being prevented to play, and for a player of Kaep’s caliber, that number could have gone as high as $90 million, or three times the $30 million he is worth.
On the other side of that, if both sides had not agreed to settle, the league could have been on the hook for a costly litigation should Kaep have decided to take the case the court.
Kaepernick filed his grievance in 2017, accusing the league and all 32 teams of keeping him from playing because of the protests. Reid filed his grievance in 2018 and was later signed by the Carolina Panthers midway through the 2018 season.
Neither the NFL nor the attorney representing both players gave comment to the Journal on the reported settlement. There is a confidentiality agreement in place to keep both sides from discussing the deal that was reached last month.
The Journal notes that had Kaep prevailed in his grievance, the collective bargaining unit the league has with the players would have provided for him to receive damages worth up to three times what it was determined he lost as a result of being prevented to play, and for a player of Kaep’s caliber, that number could have gone as high as $90 million, or three times the $30 million he is worth.
