Colin Kaepernick’s Lawyer Slams Maroon 5, Adam Levine for Super Bowl ‘Cop-Out’

Recording artist Adam Levine of Maroon 5 performs onstage during the Grammys in Los Angeles, Jan. 27, 2014. Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Colin Kaepernick’s attorney Mark Geragos blasted Maroon 5 for performing during the halftime of Super Bowl 53 on Feb. 3.

In 2016, Kaepernick protested during the national anthem for several seasons before he was let go by the San Francisco 49ers. He hasn’t played on a team since March 2017.

“If you’re going to cross this ideological or intellectual picket line, then own it, and Adam Levine certainly isn’t owning it,” Geragos said, according to Yahoo News.

“It’s a cop-out when you start talking about, ‘I’m not a politician; I’m just doing the music.’ Most of the musicians who have any kind of consciousness whatsoever understand what’s going on here.”

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) stands on the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016. AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

The attorney was responding to Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine’s comments when he said, “No one put more thought and love into this than I did…I spoke to many people. Most importantly, though, I silenced all the noise and listened to myself, and made my decision about how I felt.”

Levine added: “We’d like to move on from it and … speak through the music.

“And once again, I like to think that people know where I stand as a human being after two decades doing this … I’m not a public speaker. I do speak but it’s through the music.

“My life’s work and what I put out into the universe has been positive and hopefully inspiring … So, what I would say is, you know, we are going to do what we keep on doing, hopefully without becoming politicians and continuing to use the one voice we know how to use properly,” the singer added, Yahoo reported.

Several other performers decided not to play during the halftime show because they think the NFL is trying to blacklist Kaepernick.

Meanwhile, national anthem singer Gladys Knight addressed the Kaepernick controversy.

“I am proud to use my voice to unite and represent our country in my hometown of Atlanta,” Knight told CBS News in a Feb 1 report.

She added: “The NFL recently announced their new social justice platform Inspire Change, and I am honored to be a part of its inaugural year.”

But Knight told AP on Feb. 1 she has been working for civil rights and has been singing the anthem since she was a child. She said that while everyone is entitled to their opinion, “once we get into that love thing, it all comes together and goes wherever and we end up clapping and having a good time.”

Goodell Addresses Controversy

Ahead of the Super Bowl, NFL chief Roger Goodell said that an NFL team would sign Kaepernick if they thought he would help them.

“I’ve said it many times privately, publicly that our clubs are the ones that make decisions on players that they want to have on their roster,” Goodell told the media on Wednesday, NBC Sports reported.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell at a news conference in San Francisco on Feb. 5, 2016. AP Photo/Charlie Riedel

“I think if a team decides that Colin Kaepernick or any other player can help their team win, that’s what they’ll do,” Goodell said. “They want to win, and they make those decisions individually in best interest of their club.”

Kaepernick in October 2017 filed a grievance against the NFL, alleging that teams colluded to keep him out of the league due to his political stance.