Jeremy Kerley Praises Chip Kelly's Response to Colin Kaepernick Kneeling in 2016

While Chip Kelly's one-year stint in San Francisco was not an on-field success, former 49ers receiver Jeremy Kerley said the coach did an excellent job of helping the team navigate Colin Kaepernick's protests of police brutality and discrimination against black people during the 2016 season.

Kerley said Kelly allowed Kaepernick to address the team during an open forum, which took away any potential tension as to why the quarterback was kneeling during the national anthem.

"For Chip being able to do that, I think that was pretty cool for him to kind of take the elephant out the room and remove all doubt," Kerley told TMZ Sports. "I think that was pretty cool. I love Chip for it. It kind of removed all doubts and stuff in the locker room, and we just bonded like we were close, and it was fun."

Kaepernick's protests did not appear to cause any distraction for the 49ers, whose 2-14 record was more a result of a dearth of talent on the roster than anything else.

Kerley said he believes it's long past time for an NFL team to sign Kaepernick, who has not played since the 2016 season, due in large part to his protests during the anthem.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told ESPN's Mike Greenberg in June he would "encourage" a team to sign Kaepernick.