Doug Baldwin Speaks on Colin Kaepernick, Jeremy Lane's National Anthem Protests

National anthem protests have enveloped the NFL in advance of the regular season, and Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin tweeted out his thoughts Friday on the stances San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and Seahawks teammate Jeremy Lane took. 

"What is the ‘why’ for ones actions?" Baldwin asked. "Not what you think their why is. Not way your why would be. What is the ‘why’ of the person protesting?! We honor those who fight for our right to freedom of speech and then condemn those who exercise that right?" 

Baldwin's comments come a week after Kaepernick told NFL.com's Steve Wyche that he sat during the national anthem in the 49ers' preseason game against the Green Bay Packers as a stand against injustice. 

"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," Kaepernick said. "To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder."

Friday, Baldwin raised several questions for people to consider when they evaluate why players are silently protesting "The Star-Spangled Banner."

"Question 1: Why is it so important to one person to protest about the treatment of other human beings?" he asked. "Question 2: Do you care enough about someone’s protest of the treatment of other human beings to not judge and listen?"

Baldwin later opined that change can't be facilitated without an initial stand. 

"To change the status quo you have to upset the status quo," he said. "Not by going with the flow. You have to stand/sit for what you believe in."

Based on Lane's comments following Thursday's preseason meeting with the Oakland Raiders, the Seahawks cornerback sounded motivated to go against the grain and join Kaepernick after hearing about what drove the 49ers signal-caller to sit in the first place. 

"It's something I plan to keep on doing until I feel like justice has been served," he said, per NBC News. "No, I didn't tell anyone I was going to do it. I just did it. ... I don't mean no disrespect toward anybody, but I'm just standing behind what I believe." 

Baldwin also disclosed that, like Kaepernick, he doesn't believe the anthem protest revolves around disrespect of the military. 

"If you think that the protest is to disrespect the armed forces then I don’t know what else to say," he tweeted. "You’ve clearly missed the message."

The Seahawks receiver later highlighted what he thinks are flawed statements made by detractors of Kaepernick's actions: 

Following Thursday's game against the San Diego Chargers on Military Appreciation Night, Kaepernick clarified that he means no disrespect against the armed forces when he opts against standing for the national anthem.

"The media painted this as I’m anti-American, anti-men-and-women of the military and that’s not the case at all," Kaepernick said, per USA Today's Josh Peter. "I realize that men and women of the military go out and sacrifice their lives and put themselves in harm’s way for my freedom of speech and my freedoms in this country and my freedom to take a seat or take a knee so I have the utmost respect for them."

Kaepernick, who reportedly stood for and applauded during the singing of "God Bless America" on Thursday, later disclosed that he has pledged to donate $1 million to community organizations, per Peter.