If you asked me two years ago what I thought Colin Kaepernick would be doing in late August of 2016, I would've bet my bottom dollar that he would've been tweeting at teams from a high school football field, running routes with that high school's JV and varsity squads, and tweeting about how "he still has it" and could "help an NFL team immediately."

I would've been dead wrong. Instead, Colin Kaepernick is spending late August 2016 riding the bench in more ways then one: he is still a backup quarterback, and he is refusing to stand for the national anthem. After the first game in which he sat for the anthem, he dropped this doozy in a press conference, per NFL Media:

"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color...To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.”

“This is not something that I am going to run by anybody,” he said. “I am not looking for approval. I have to stand up for people that are oppressed. … If they take football away, my endorsements from me, I know that I stood up for what is right.”

For a guy whose job was very much insecure, that is a bold move that takes a lot of balls. Especially considering that Colin Kaepernick was never a great quarterback. He had one spectacular season in which he went to the Super Bowl with the 49ers, but really that was his calling card as a quarterback; he came in to replace an injured Alex Smith, and in seven games as starter, he had a 98.3 rating with 10 TD and 3 INT. Those seven games and the playoffs that season became the Year of Kaepernick-- he could run the ball craftily, he could create plays, and he was athletic. He came out of nowhere and played really well for a period of time. He was the Jeremy Lin and Linsanity of the NFL.

After 2012, he had another respectable season, but then he deteriorates. His numbers started dwindling, and he slowly faded from the collective memory of football fans.

So, how did we get from Kaepernick the quarterback to Kaepernick the national firebrand? Why did Kaepernick start sitting for the national anthem now as opposed to two or three seasons ago?

Depending on who you ask, Kaepernick's latest stunt is either about money or morals. Those who are of the "All Lives Matter" and "Blue Lives Matter" tend to think this is more about Kaepernick, the aging quarterback with dwindling numbers, becoming a national controversy in order to prevent himself from getting cut by the team. After all, if the 49ers cut Kaepernick after he revealed himself as a lover of #blacklivesmatter and a hater of cops, it would not only be an awful look for the 49ers, but Colin would have himself a nice First Amendment lawsuit to file (one that would probably settle out of court and with a fat check in his pocket).

Of course, those who agree with Kaepernick's stances are saying that he finally had the opportunity to speak out respectfully and peacefully, and that the reason he didn't do this earlier is because he had to fear his higher-ups and couldn't take the chance of risking his football career. He's doing it now because race relations have devolved to the point where he can no longer tolerate them.

The right-wing Twitter army is coming out in full force to vilify Kaepernick for not standing for the anthem. They find it outrageous that a kid who got adopted by two white parents would be so rah-rah black causes. The left-wing Twitter army is coming out in full force to defend Kaepernick and attack the right-wingers, because that is what progressive Twitter does best. It's a mess.

Yet, what I believe is the biggest issue is the one that has been generally ignored: you can't force Kaepernick to stand for the anthem, and you can't force the 49ers to keep Kaepernick.

Do I think every American should stand, remove their caps, and place their right hand over their heart when the national anthem comes on? Absolutely. My grandparents didn't survive the Holocaust and my mother didn't escape a dictatorship for me to sit here and thumb my nose at the country that allowed my family to grow and survive.

But, that being said, it's the same exact reason I respect Kaepernick's decision to sit. The same reason I want to stand is why I'm fine with Kaepernick sitting, and why everybody else should be too. The First Amendment exists so that Americans have the ability to express their dissent without the fear of repercussions. It is my favorite amendment in the constitution, and my favorite part about America.

I love my country and I love what it has meant to my family, and for that I stand. And because Colin Kaepernick has the same first amendment right I do, he sits. It is ultimately as American a move as anything, so let the guy do his thing and leave him alone. Let Kaepernick do his thing, simply because he can. This is a free country, after all.