Colin Kaepernick was invited by players, not owners to NFL meetings, open to participating

The NFL held meetings between players and owners on Tuesday, attempting to begin to work through some of the issues that underly the protests first begun by Colin Kaepernick. Eric Reid and Jed York represented the San Francisco 49ers, with a host of other players and owners on hand. Anquan Boldin was the only ex-player in attendance, but after the meeting, Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins said Kaepernick had been invited. Jenkins said he was not sure why Kaepernick did not attend.

Kaepernick has filed a grievance against the NFL, claiming collusion in preventing him from getting a workout or a contract offer. He has hired Mark Geragos to represent him in the matter, and on Tuesday, Geragos provided a statement about the meeting that took place on Tuesday.

According to Geragos, Kaepernick was not invited to the meetings by NFL or team officials, but players in attendance “wanted him present.” There are plans for a follow-up meeting, and the players, “have asked that he attend the next meeting with the goal of forging a lasting and faithful consensus around these issues.” Geragos said that Kaepernick “is open to future participation on these important discussions.”

There is no word yet on when the next meeting will be held.