Several NFL teams canceled practices on Thursday to focus instead on social activism in the wake of the officer-involved shooting of Jacob Blake.
One of the first to cancel its practice was the Washington Football Team, according to TMZ Sports.
Team head coach Ron Rivera insisted that he and team president Jason Wright made the decision to cancel the practice together.
“Jason Wright and I worked this afternoon to develop a response that has the right balance between the business of football and being truly thoughtful about the social injustice we witnessed with this latest incident in Wisconsin,” Rivera reportedly said on Thursday.
“We went to Mr. Snyder with our plan for tomorrow and we were given his complete support and approval,” he added.
“In place of our practice at FedEx Field,” Rivera exclaimed, “the players, coaches and football staff will meet as a football family and we will continue our open dialogue on the issues of racism and social injustice in our country.”
On the heels of the Washington Team’s decision, the New York Jets, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, and Arizona Cardinals joined the Washington team in canceling their practices.
The Packers, Jaguars, and Bears postponed the start of their practices, but did not cancel them entirely.
On the other hand, the Ravens, the Giants, Patriots, and the Buccaneers went ahead with their practices as scheduled.
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) August 27, 2020
We have cancelled all team activities today.
Coach Kingsbury will be addressing the media at approximately 9:30 AM MST.
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) August 27, 2020
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