Michael Vick Apologizes for Colin Kaepernick Hair Comments

Michael Vick apologized for suggesting Colin Kaepernick should cut his hair.

Michael Vick backtracked on the comments he made about Colin Kaepernick’s hair earlier this week on Fox Sports 1.

The former Falcons and Eagles quarterback was highly scrutinized for his initial stance (“The thing that he needs to do is just try to be presentable,”) as part of the conversation about why the 29-year-old Kaepernick remains a free agent. Vick emphasized at the time that he felt Kaepernick’s play was the primary reason he was unsigned, and not his decision to kneel in protest of racial injustice during the national anthem before games.

Vick released a statement Monday to clarify, and went a step further to clear the air with his comments Thursday.

“At the end of the day, what I said, I should have never said. I think it was taken out of context in regards to what I was trying to convey, but I only want to help Kaepernick,” Vick said Thursday on the Dan Patrick Show. "I'm not a general manager, I'm not the guy who makes the decisions on getting him signed and I'm truly sorry for what I said. I think I should have used a better choice of words.

“Obviously his Afro has nothing to do with him being signed, and I wasn't trying to relay that message,” he added. "It was more so about helping him at the end of the day. In all my interviews, all I have ever tried to do is help him and talk positive.”

After wearing his hair short for the majority of his NFL career, Kaepernick started sporting the afro last season, coinciding with his national anthem protest. The decision to let his hair grow long was widely praised and seen by many as a response to critics questioning his blackness. 

With NFL training camps set to open next week, Kaepernick is still without a contract. He came close to signing with the Seahawks but that deal didn’t materialize.