Critics Say Pat Tillman, Not Colin Kaepernick Would Have Been Better Choice for Nike Campaign

Tillman Kaeprnick
The Associated Press/Getty Images
Warner Todd Huston

Critics of the new Nike ad featuring national anthem protester Colin Kaepernick, say that a better face for the sportswear giant’s campaign would have been former Arizona Cardinals player and Afghan War hero Pat Tillman.

Nike released its new “Just Do It” ad featuring Kaepernick late on Monday night. But the campaign met with immediate condemnation.

The ad features an extreme close-up of Kaepernick gazing into the camera with the caption, “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything,” over his face.

But many feel there is a far more worthy face for the Nike 30th anniversary “Just Do It” campaign than former San Francisco 49ers second-string quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, some fans are suggesting the shoe maker feature Tillman instead of Kaepernick.

“Tillman, the former Arizona Cardinals football player, and Army Ranger, was killed in Afghanistan by friendly fire in 2004,” the paper reported. “Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016, saying he was drawing attention to racial inequality.”

As soon as Nike’s Kaepernick ad hit the Internet, supporters of Tillman leaped into action:

https://twitter.com/kingjustin1996/status/1036796903734882304

Still, Tillman’s widow asked people not to politicize her husband’s name telling the Republic that Tillman’s service “should never be politicized in a way that divides us.”

In the meantime, Nike has already suffered a financial consequence for choosing Kaepernick for its campaign:

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.

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