Drew Brees on NFL players kneeling next season: 'I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag'

• Drew Brees said he'll "never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country."
• In an interview with Yahoo, the New Orleans Saints quarterback addressed the prospect of NFL players kneeling during the national anthem upon the league's return this fall.
• In 2016, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began kneeling during the anthem in protest of police brutality in the United States.
• The issue of police brutality has prompted protests across the nation this week after a former police officer suffocated George Floyd — an unarmed black man — by kneeling on his neck for more than eight minutes in Minneapolis.

A conversation surrounding race relations and police brutality has gripped the United States in light of George Floyd's killing.

And naturally, many are wondering how this conversation will translate to the NFL — the league that blackballed former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick after he began kneeling during the national anthem — once games return this fall.

Many players, coaches, and franchises have already spoken out in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. But for one future Hall of Famer, the prospect of NFL players kneeling during the national anthem upon the league's return this fall is something he'll "never agree with."

In an interview with Yahoo published Wednesday, Drew Brees said he'll "never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country." He also said that hearing the national anthem makes him emotional and evokes thoughts of his grandfathers, both of whom served in the military.

"Let me just tell you what I see or what I feel when the national anthem is played and when I look at the flag of the United States," Brees said. "I envision my two grandfathers who fought for this country during World War II... both risking their lives to protect our country and to try to make our country and this world a better place."

The New Orleans Saints quarterback clarified that by standing in honor of the flag during the national anthem, he intends to honor more than just current troops and military veterans. He said that the gesture serves to acknowledge "all that has been endured by so many people up until this point."

"Every time I stand with my hand over my heart looking at that flag and singing the national anthem, that's what I think about," he added. "And, in many cases, it brings me to tears, thinking about all that has been sacrificed. Not just those in the military, but for that matter, those throughout the civil rights movements of the '60s."

Brees acknowledged that "we still have a long way to go" but called for unity to overcome the issues the United States is currently facing.

"Is everything right with our country right now? No, it's not," Brees said. "But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart is it shows unity. It shows that we are all in this together, we can all do better, and that we are all part of the solution."

Check out the video of Brees below:

On Tuesday, the NFL all-time leader in career passing yards took to Instagram to participate in #BlackoutTuesday — a trend intended to help elevate black voices on social media.

And on Wednesday morning, Brees posted a related message to his Instagram page. He wrote in his caption that "if you listen closely, the sound of children playing is the same no matter where you are in the world" and called on his followers to "raise, teach, but most importantly model to young people what it is to love all and respect all."

When Kaepernick, Eric Reid, and countless other NFL players kneeled during the playing of the national anthem, their stated goal was to raise awareness of police brutality and its disproportionate impact on communities of color in the United States. But like Brees, many fans and NFL leaders took issue with the action on the basis that is disrespected the flag, members of the armed forces, and the country itself.

At the height of his protest, Kaepernick insisted that he has "great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country" and that he personally knows people who fought in the military, but that "they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone [and] that's not happening."

"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," Kaepernick said at the time, via NFL.com.

Kaepernick last played in the league in 2016 and, since then, he and Reid settled their collusion lawsuit with the NFL. The 32-year-old dual-threat quarterback regularly uses his platform to advocate for social justice reform, and he has been particularly vocal during recent protests over George Floyd's death.

Outrage boiled over nationwide this week after white former police officer Derek Chauvin suffocated Floyd — an unarmed black man — by kneeling on his neck for more than eight minutes while arresting him under suspicions of using a fake $20. Floyd died of asphyxiation, while Chauvin has since been charged with second-degree murder and the other three officers at the scene were charged with aiding and abetting murder.

• Read more:
• LAPD used UCLA stadium named in honor of Jackie Robinson to detain Black Lives Matter protesters, and the school demanded it stop
• The San Francisco 49ers participated in #BlackoutTuesday and fans are calling it hypocrisy after the treatment of Colin Kaepernick
• Floyd Mayweather plans to pay for George Floyd's funeral expenses after the death sparked outrage across the nation
• 51 athletes who are out and proud members of the LGBTQ+ community