NFL players will honor racism victims with names on helmet decals

When football season kicks off this fall, NFL players will be wearing helmet decals featuring the names of victims of systemic racism and police violence, a league source said.

Each week, teams will have a choice to honor one specific name or several names, a source told CNN. All 32 NFL teams will feature the decals.

It will be up to the players to determine which name or initials will be featured on the decals, the source said.

As social justice unrest has rocked the country in recent months, the league has been making its own efforts to confront racism, four years after Colin Kaepernick began to kneel on one knee during the pre-game National Anthem as a protest against systemic racism.

Without mentioning Kaepernick, a former player for the San Francisco 49ers, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said last month the league should have listened earlier to players’ concerns about racism.

That was in response to NFL players calling on the league to condemn racism and support its Black players.

Soon after Goodell’s comments, the NFL announced it would pledge $250 million over the next 10 years to help fight systematic racism.

Kaepernick, who’s been unsigned since 2017, last month said he’s joining the blogging platform Medium as a board member and contributor, creating stories about race and civil rights.

The 2020-21 season is scheduled to start September 10, with team training camps set for July 28.