Wife: Colts Cut Antonio Cromartie Because He Kneeled During Anthem
INDIANAPOLIS (CBSNewYork) -- Antonio Cromartie's wife says the Indianapolis Colts cut her husband earlier this month because the cornerback kneeled during the national anthem.
In an Instragram post Wednesday, Terricka Cromartie responded to a quote by Colts owner Jim Irsay about how the NFL was the "wrong venue" to stage such protests and that team employees must remember that "when the lights go on, we are entertainment."
"You are Nothing More than an Entertainer," Terricka Cromartie wrote before making her account private Thursday. "Just Shut and do what we say. You have No rights as along as you are working for me."
She added: "One things for sure I know my husband was told Not to take a Knee and he went with his heart and he took one. And that cost him his Job."
Antonio Cromartie, a former Jets Pro Bowler, followed the lead of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick by kneeling during "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the Colts' Sept. 25 game against the San Diego Chargers and again Oct. 2 against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London. He was the only Colt to do so.
The Colts insisted Antonio Cromartie's release was entirely a football decision.
Antonio Cromartie was benched in the second half of the Jaguars game because of poor play and was released two days later. Colts cornerback Darius Butler was returning from a hamstring injury around that same time.
Kaepernick, the 49ers' quarterback, began refusing to stand for the national anthem to protest racial oppression and police brutality in the United States. Many other players throughout the league have joined him since.