Roger Goodell Added to Owners to Be Deposed in Colin Kaepernick Collusion Case

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will be asked to turn over his email and cellphone records and will be deposed in the collusion case filed by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick against the league, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.

Goodell will join Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Houston Texans owner Bob McNair, Seattle Seahawks owner Paul Allen, San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York, NFL Executive Vice President/Football Operations Troy Vincent and Senior Vice President of Player Engagement Arthur McAfee in the depositions.

From the filing: "[NFL and league owners] have colluded to deprive Mr. Kaepernick of employment rights in retaliation for Mr. Kaepernick's leadership and advocacy for equality and social justice and his bringing awareness to peculiar institutions still undermining racial equality in the United States."

Kaepernick, 30, began sitting and eventually kneeling in preseason games in August 2016 while the national anthem was played to protest police brutality and racial discrimination. Those actions were picked up by other players around the league last season, who have protested during the anthem in various ways. Kaepernick became a free agent before the 2017 campaign but has not been signed to an NFL team.

The protests during the anthems have become a national debate this season, with President Donald Trump weighing in and the players and owners meeting to continue the discussion.

But Kaepernick remains at the epicenter of the conversation, and his collusion case may prove what many NFL players and media members have already suggested: That he has been blackballed by the league for the political stance he took.