Colin Kaepernick insists “I’ve changed my way of thinking,” as he continues to await word from Miami police concerning their ongoing investigation into allegations he was at the scene and maybe even involved in the sexual assault of an unidentified 25-year-old woman early last month.
The San Francisco 49ers star quarterback, teammate Quinton Patton, and Seattle Seahawks wideout Ricardo Lockette have all been implicated in the alleged assault that took place at the Viceroy Hotel which police initially described as a “suspicious incident.”
“It’s been put out that I did something wrong,” ESPN reported Kaepernick told an audience of more than a 1,000 onlookers convened for a prayer breakfast in his hometown of Turlock, Calif. earlier this week “Even though it’s a bad circumstance, a bad situation, I feel like ultimately I’ve been blessed because it’s changed my way of thinking. It’s made me stronger. It’s made me look at things differently.”
Niners coach Jim Harbaugh also recently came out in defense of his quarterback, telling reporters he feels his star player is a victim of “his reputation.”
Harbaugh later added “there needs to be a resolution to some of this jump-the-gun, witch-hunt scenarios we’re seeing. I’ve seen one side reported. I’ve heard the other side and feel very good there’ll be a good resolution, and hopefully a just one, too. I hate to see his reputation be the victim. Winston Churchill had a great quote: ‘A lie will get halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to put on its pants.’”
No matter what comes of it all, the 26-year-old Kaepernick has been affected. The Niners recently iced negotiations with the fourth-year quarterback until everything plays out in the police investigation.
“It makes me very happy to know that people are staying behind me the way they have,” added Kaepernick, rumored to still be working out with teammates in preparation of next season.
