Titans Players React to Verdict in Derek Chauvin Murder Case
The Tennessee Titans and a handful of players offered reaction on social media in wake of the Derek Chauvin verdict.
The 45-year-old former Minneapolis police officer knelt on George Floyd’s neck during a fatal May 2020 arrest. On Tuesday, Chauvin was found guilty of all three charges brought against him, including murder and second- and third-degree manslaughter.
Among the first Titans to react to the breaking development was A.J. Brown, who tweeted words that many across the country can agree with.
“Accountable!” the wide receiver simply wrote.
Guard Rodger Saffold used the word “justice” in his reaction. A white police officer who senselessly killed a black man received the punishment he deserved at last.
“Justice for George Floyd! Many prayers have been answered! I hope the family is overjoyed took a lot of work to get this conviction. #GeorgeFloydTrial,” Saffold tweeted.
The Titans released a statement that denounced racism from their official Twitter account.
“We reject racism in every form and are committed to being a part of the generation that ends it,” the statement said.
Safety Amani Hooker, who figures to be a starter this season, did not offer any of his own thoughts publicly. But he retweeted several posts pertaining to the verdict, including one that offered a sobering reality.
That tweet read, “Chauvin is the eighth officer convicted of murder since 2005. Of over 16,000 killings. Just providing context for the "first steps" that we're taking.”
Last summer, as social injustice, police brutality, the Black Lives Matter movement and other related topics dominated the news cycle, the Titans and other professional sports organizations became more vocal on those matters than ever before.
While others had just as much of a role, quarterback Ryan Tannehill and safety Kevin Byard were the Titans’ main spokesmen.
The Titans and several other NFL franchises canceled practice after a Kenosha, Wisc., police officer shot -- and nearly killed -- Jacob Blake, a black man.
Days after Chauvin murdered Floyd, Titans coach Mike Vrabel, in a press conference, called for inclusion, diversity, equality and opportunity, saying “on behalf of the Tennessee Titans – our owner, our general manager, the head football coach, our staff – we want to support and will continue to help lead our players as we work towards that common goal.”
