Brian Urlacher was so bothered by Colin Kaepernick’s national anthem protest that he and his wife reportedly quit watching NFL football for nearly three years.
The retired Chicago Bears star discussed his decision in a recent appearance on The Craig Carton Show, saying Kaepernick’s actions would not have gone over well if they had been teammates.
“The thing with him taking a knee would have been really, really f–king hard for me to put up with in that locker room,” Urlacher said.
The former linebacker explained that he believed political disagreements could interfere with team unity.
“You’re men, you’re on the same team. You’re trying to get the same goal,” he explained.
Colin Kaepernick taking a knee in Brian Urlacher’s locker room?
— The Craig Carton Show (@CraigCartonShow) September 25, 2026
“That would’ve probably been a line in the sand for me.”@BUrlacher54 tells @craigcartonlive why sports should be the great unifier. pic.twitter.com/IXYj1FoboL
Urlacher, who retired in 2013, watched the controversy unfold from home before deciding to stop following the league.
Kaepernick, a former 49ers quarterback, has not returned to the NFL since 2016.
Kaepernick recently discussed his contentious departure in an NBC News interview accompanying the release of his memoir, The Perilous Fight.
He maintained that the league continues to exclude him because of his activism.
“I watch college football,” Kaepernick said, noting that he still checks NFL player statistics to compare his performance with quarterbacks in the league today.
