Earlier this month, Denver Broncos head coach Vic Fangio said that he didn’t see racism or discrimination in the NFL – a comment that many players and analysts found, well, stunning.
Fangio later apologized for his comments and, to his credit, educated himself on the realities that many of his players have faced in their lives.
“We talked about it, and we all had a chance to really [say how we felt],” Broncos linebacker Malik Reed said on The Zach Gelb Show. “It wasn’t even about what was said in the media, but [we] just had that chance [to talk]. I’m thankful for Joe Ellis, our president, and Coach Fangio providing us that space to be able to come out and voice how we feel, what we think about a topic, and really just listen and see where we’re coming from.”
Fangio, 61, became Broncos head coach in 2019 and went 7-9 in his first season. Reed, 23, believes Fangio’s apology was sincere.
“I felt like he was very open-minded and willing to see a different perspective and be open to what somebody else may have went through and what somebody else may have experienced,” Reed said. “I feel like it was very big of him to come out and voice that . . . to let us know that he hears us and that he never wants to disrespect us in any way or disrespect anything that’s going on with the movement. So I thought a lot of coach. That was great what he did, and I appreciate us having that time to talk amongst the team and continue to understand each other.”