Rams on Floyd & the protests

Cooper Kupp@CooperKupp
Battled for days to find the words and I don’t know if I ever will find them. Not to appropriately give weight to the injustice and despair that our brothers and sisters experience and live in each and every day.

But the fact that I can’t speak seems deserving, because talking has been done for so long without a willingness by so many to listen, understand, reflect, and move to bring change both inward and outward.

We have an obligation to walk with every ounce of strength against those that operate daily in prejudice.

The pit in my stomach reminds me that it has been known the injustice and brokenness that exists, and still I have not joined along in the screams for change.

While at the same time working, living, walking alongside my friends who live each day in a system and society that has failed them repeatedly.

My family will not stand for it and we will move. Stillness breeds stagnancy. And we will not be still any longer.

They are killing our people and it has gone way too far!!! It’s sickening. I’m not debating with none of you either.

— Malcolm Brown (@MallyCat_28) May 31, 2020

A decent example…Watch the officer who pushes the guy down. He was NOT going to help him up until he saw his fellow officer help him up. THATS what it takes. Call your fellow officers out. Show/Teach them whats right and whats wrong. Dont sit back and watch ANYONE doing wrong! https://t.co/VqDJuJX7V9

— Malcolm Brown (@MallyCat_28) May 31, 2020

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🙌🏾 https://t.co/wnzI84rDLP

— Tremayne Anchrum jr. (@tla_73) May 31, 2020

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Stu Jackson@StuJRams
Sean McVay’s full opening statement from this afternoon’s virtual media session:

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“I’m a little disappointed that I haven’t been asking these questions long before this.” https://t.co/1xqKN1zMgH

— Gary Klein (@LATimesklein) June 3, 2020

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Rams’ meeting on George Floyd death was emotional and powerful, Sean McVay says

Gary Klein

https://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/story/2020-06-02/

There was sadness, and also anger and tears. “It was as real and authentic as it gets,” Rams coach Sean McVay said.

The Rams on Tuesday returned to their regularly scheduled virtual offseason program, but McVay said that an emotional and “powerful” team meeting the previous day continued to reverberate.

McVay said about 125 players, coaches and staff participated Monday in a videoconference that afforded all a platform for discussing the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, the worldwide protests that have followed and the feelings and experiences that have shaped individual and collective reaction.
Floyd, an African American man, died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes while restraining him. The officer, Derek Chauvin, was arrested after days of protests and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the Floyd family,” McVay told reporters during a videoconference. “This tragedy has affected our entire country and, really, our entire world. And with all the things going on, we thought it was really important as an organization to have a meeting … to really provide the platform, most importantly, to listen, to learn.”

Over the weekend, several Rams players utilized social media to express feelings about Floyd’s death, racism and the need for change. Quarterback Jared Goff, running back Malcolm Brown, defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day, safety John Johnson and receiver Cooper Kupp were among players who posted or retweeted others.

“My heart hurts for our country,” Goff said on Instagram. “There needs to be change and it can only happen together. I’ll never pretend to understand the struggles the black community goes through daily in our country and never will know this struggle. It is my responsibility to educate myself and actively participate in advocating for the change our country desperately needs, in words and action. Love each other a little more than usual, come together, and continue to push for positive change in our country.”

McVay said players and staff members shared their experiences during the meeting.

“One of the things that I wanted to make sure that I echoed and articulated to our players was, you know, while I can’t ever say that I’ve been the victim of racial profiling or discrimination, I have been raised to know what’s right and what’s wrong,” he said.

McVay said that asking questions with empathy and listening were major takeaways.

“It’s not just the surface-level, ‘How’s your family?’” he said. “But really just demonstrating the empathy and the willingness to try to learn, try to understand, and you don’t get that without asking. … I’m a little disappointed that I haven’t been asking these questions long before this.”

In 2016, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick sparked controversy when he knelt during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial oppression in the United States.

No NFL team has signed Kaepernick since the end of the 2016 season.

McVay was asked if his perspective on Kaepernick’s situation had changed.

“It just reiterates having empathy and understanding, and allowing people to be able to handle the situations and what they see best fit,” McVay said.
McVay said he would support Rams players if they chose to demonstrate on the field during the upcoming season.

“It would be extremely silly of me, if I’m sitting here saying that I’m going to listen, to learn, and try to have an empathy and understanding, to not allow guys the platform if they feel like it’s the right way to represent the healing and some of those solutions that we’re looking to,” he said. “I absolutely would be open and wanting to listen and be open to that.”

John Wolford, who was on the practice squad last season, is Goff’s backup. The Rams also signed undrafted free agents Josh Love and Bryce Perkins.
Would McVay consider signing Kaepernick?

“He hasn’t played in a long time,” McVay said. “We feel really good about our quarterback situation.”

McVay said he would continue searching for ways to give players and staff the opportunity to voice their concerns and help change systems that cause societal problems.

Hall of Famer @aeneas35 joined @gmfb earlier this week to discuss current events taking place in the U.S.#HuddleUpAmerica pic.twitter.com/u2HWgFFksG

— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) June 9, 2020

Rams’ Jared Goff, Robert Woods strive to advance social justice conversation

Lindsey Thiry

https://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles-rams/post/_/id/41722/rams-jared-goff-robert-woods-strive-to-advance-social-justice-conversation

George Floyd’s death reverberated throughout the world, the NFL and, closer to home, the Los Angeles Rams’ virtual meeting room.

On Wednesday, 10 days after Rams coach Sean McVay held a video conference that urged players and coaches to speak about Floyd and personal experiences regarding racial issues, Rams quarterback Jared Goff and receiver Robert Woods said social justice awareness has been raised, and that it’s time for the conversation to advance.

“Now is a call for action,” Woods said during a video conference with reporters Wednesday. “Find ways to actually move in the community, move in our police reforms, sit down with our political leaders, different things other than — I think take a knee, lock arms right now — I think everyone’s aware, now it’s time to get involved, whatever skin color, job, profession, I think it’s that time to take action.”

Goff echoed San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman, who told Sports Illustrated last week that he was “impressed with the white QBs speaking up because those are voices that carry different weight than the black voices for some people … which means the people who refuse to listen to a black athlete’s perspective will hear the same thing said from a white athlete, but receive the message much differently.”

“He’s right,” Goff said about Sherman. “The people of color have been fighting for this for so long and wanting change, and as a white person, as a white athlete, again you have an idea it’s happening, but it truly doesn’t hit you the way it does until something like this happens. I think for us to be able to speak out and make a stand, it can change things and it’s important … I want to be a part of that change.”

Before Sherman’s remarks, Goff released a statement on Instagram that read, in part, “I’ll never pretend to understand the struggles that the Black community goes through daily in our country and never will know this struggle. It is my responsibility to educate myself and actively participate in advocating for the change our country desperately needs, in words and action.”

When speaking to reporters, Woods touched on his experience involving police encounters. He said that as a kid growing up in L.A. he was questioned by police about attending a movie theater in other parts of town, that police would watch until his parents picked him up, or the police would kick him off the premises. Woods also said that he has been pulled over by police at gunpoint.

“Things like that, just — you get numb to it,” Woods said. “I feel like you almost just know how to react and know how to act in those situations.”

Goff said it was powerful to hear the experiences of coaches and teammates.

“You do know this stuff exists, but hearing it from people that you love and teammates that you go to work with every single day, getting to hear it from their point of view, it changes things,” Goff said.

Last season, Woods voiced a Los Angeles Police Department recruitment commercial that aired on L.A. sports radio. He said Wednesday that he still supports the cause.

“I still agree with people — proper people need to join the forces,” Woods said. “I think we need people of color, people who are respectable people, honest people, and to this day I still think we need to have correct police officers, but I do think we need to change some of the reforms.”

Woods said he was uncertain whether the Rams, who have stated that they will discuss any form of on-field action as a team, will kneel during the national anthem.

“I personally feel like the kneeling was an awareness thing. I don’t know what we will do,” Woods said. “I think the biggest thing right now is to try to have action, whether it’s going down and voting, encouraging others to vote.”

Woods said he has signed a letter that would be sent to politicians about police reform.

Jared Goff wants to be a leader for change. (via @JaredGoff16, h/t @thecheckdown) pic.twitter.com/7seH5UCslL

— NFL (@NFL) June 27, 2020