Alejandro Villanueva Blames Media for Fallout on Drew Brees Comments

Pittsburgh Steelers left tackle Alejandro Villanueva spoke out against the media on Thursday when asked about his feelings on Drew Brees.

It's been a whirlwind for players in the NFL the last few days. 

As the nation progresses and protests for justice on the many issues this country faces, opinions are beginning to be shared by some of Sunday's famed heroes. Majority of NFL players have come forward and shared their support for the recent events in the United States. 

Then, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees was asked on his opinion of kneeling during the national anthem. 

Highlight: @readdanwrite asks @drewbrees what the star NFL quarterback thinks about "players kneeling again when the NFL season starts."@drewbrees: “I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country.”

Full exchange: pic.twitter.com/MpCkFyOMed

— Yahoo Finance (@YahooFinance) June 3, 2020

The fallout on Brees' comments by teammates, fellow players in the league and even other athletes across the country was swift, as many took to social media to assert their displeasure with Brees and his beliefs. Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Steven Nelson stated Brees' comments were "insensitive". 

Steelers left tackle Alejandro Villanueva went on Pittsburgh's 93.7 The Fan on Thursday and was asked about his opinion on Brees' comments on kneeling during the national anthem.

"It was taken out of context the last time I talked about this issue. I will never speak on it again" said Villanueva. "I'm gonna blame it on the media. The media is always trying to hyper focus things. Pit people against each other. The media is unbelievably divisive right now."

Villanueva, who served three tours overseas as a captain in the United States Army, was notoriously photographed standing alone outside of the Steelers' tunnel before a game in Chicago in 2017. The Steelers had agreed to protest by staying in the locker room for the national anthem rather than kneeling. Villanueva regretted the move almost instantly, feeling as if he "threw his teammates under the bus." 

For better or for worse, Villanueva became a symbol for those against protesting during the national anthem.

"This national anthem ordeal has sort of been out of control, and there's a lot of blame on myself. Every single one of my teammates is extremely supportive and extremely patriotic. I can honestly said that" said Villanueva via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. 

No teammates or member of the Steelers organization have publicly commented on Villanueva's statements. 

Donnie Druin is a Staff Writer with AllSteelers. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.