The Seattle Seahawks opened training camp Saturday and Michael Bennett used his post-practice press conference as a social platform.
Following in the footsteps of NBA stars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul earlier this month at the ESPYs, Bennett called on other NFL stars to be more vocal when it comes to social issues.
Wearing a "Black Lives Matter" T-shirt, the veteran defensive end cited WNBA players who wore black T-shirts as a silent protest against recent shootings by and against police across the country. The shirts were also to show support for the "Black Lives Matter" movement and the players were initially fined before the fines were rescinded.
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Bennett, 30, said NFL players need to speak out without fear of consequence as a social responsibility.
"That's super important (for the WNBA to show support)," Bennett told reporters. "I think women are usually stronger when it comes to stuff like that. It takes men longer to step up. Plus the WNBA, there's not as much marketing as in the NFL and basketball. If you really want to be a great influencer ... you can't really let the marketing dollars control you because brands control everything. I think the women in the WNBA have really stood up for what they want.
"Most of the players in the NFL are black, 90-80 percent of them. But a lot of the things in the NFL, it's so broken; you don't see a lot of great players talking about things socially.
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"Whether it's Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers — all these guys are white. They don't have to deal with the same things we deal with as black players," the nine-year veteran continued. "It's not as many. In the NBA... the greatest players are at the forefront of the movement. Here in the NFL, the greatest players aren't in the forefront of the movement. Whether it's the CBA, whether it's things going on with trying to change concussions — the greatest players aren't involved like LeBron James or Chris Paul. Our great players are sitting back taking the dollars, whether it's Cam Newton, all these guys, they're just not at the forefront of trying to change what's going on.
"As a great player, you have to remember that there was people who came before you. A lot of the people who came before us, they put in a lot of work in. Whether it was strikes, whatever they stood up for. They had to do that. A lot of times we don't know our history and forget about those people. You forget to pay homage to all of those guys. That's just what it is."