On Tuesday afternoon, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter by a jury for his role in the murder of George Floyd last May.
The verdict prompted reactions worldwide, and across the American sports landscape, leagues and teams released statements regarding the news, and athletes shared their thoughts and opinions via social media.
While most of the messages were filled with feelings of relief, hope, and resolve, the Las Vegas Raiders completely missed the mark. Rather than sharing a written statement, the team posted a graphic on its Twitter account that said "I Can Breathe" with the date underneath.
In spite of heavy backlash and criticism of the tweet, Raiders owner Mark Davis told the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Tuesday night that he created the post, and defended it by clarifying that the message was paraphrasing a quote from Floyd's brother, Philonise Floyd, earlier in the day. Davis also said that the tweet won't be deleted, and he's not embarrassed by the mistake.
JR offered his thoughts on Davis' tone-deaf and controversial tweet during Tuesday's edition of the JR SportBrief show.
"Mark Davis -- not that he proved himself any more stupid from his football decisions -- but he admitted today to being in the dark, by putting out a tweet that said, 'I Can Breathe,' and not understanding the implications of what might come after," JR said. "By saying, 'I'm not following talking heads' -- it's not about talking heads. It's about common sense. It's about being able to have a diverse staff. It's about giving people a chance and opportunity. It's about hopefully getting away from a space in time where there are only three Black coaches in the NFL. It's about getting away from a space in time where we don't have to say, 'Mike Tomlin, Black head coach' because it's normal.
"And so, don't get sucked up into all of the lip service that teams put out, that leagues put out. People want to say, 'Well, the players don't do this' and 'Players, speak up' and 'What about the actions?' The players, a lot of them are in the communities because this is where they're from. What they do is not plastered all over the place, and it's the same thing for the teams. But nobody should open up their mouth, nobody should say anything if you're not actually prepared to do the work.
"And this is the final message here: just take some time to learn. Take some time to step outside of the box. Take some time to speak to someone else. Take some time not to defend what you think, but to actually listen to what other people are saying first. If we had people who would actually listen, instead of fighting you tooth and nail on what they think or what they believe, we might be in a better place. And so what we saw from the Raiders today... don't be Mark Davis. Don't use ignorance as an excuse. Don't come out afterwards and say, 'Oh, I didn't know that, I should learn a little more before I speak.' We have too many people who are quick to talk, quick to respond, and not quick to listen and learn. That's a major problem."
JR's complete thoughts on Davis and the Raiders can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow the JR SportBrief show on Twitter @JRSportBrief and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.