Eric Reid, the NFL safety who stood alongside <a href="/tags/colin-kaepernick" class="text-word" target="_blank" >Colin Kaepernick</a> and suffered very similar circumstances, was back in action today with his new team the Carolina Panthers. Partly due to his protests, Eric Reid remained unsigned since the end of last season. The Carolina Panthers were the first team to formally offer him a contract. Although Kaepernick is credited with sparking the movement within the league, Eric Reid <a href="http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/24920967/eric-reid-continues-take-knee-anthem-first-game-carolina-panthers" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">has</a> been kneeling before the anthem ever since the very first encounter with his former 49ers teammate.
The Panthers signed Eric during their bye week to replace Da&#8217;Norris Searcy who suffered his second concussion in under a month. Reid maintains that he will find a way to manage both his employment with the Panthers and his impending legal case against the NFL in a balanced manner. &#8220;I&#8217;m still evaluating the scope of our country and I&#8217;ll make that decision later,&#8221; Reid said of his decision to sign whilst under oath.
Panthers franchise quarterback Cam Newton is excited to have Eric Reid within the fold. In speaking to the media, Cam outlined his faith that Eric would put the team first in all likelihood. &#8220;Eric knows what&#8217;s best for Eric and what Eric needs to do. We all understand what he&#8217;s fighting for, so if that&#8217;s something he decides to do, that&#8217;s what he decides to do,&#8221; said Newton. &#8220;But that has absolutely nothing to do with this locker room, the way we approach the game, the way we prepare and what we&#8217;re trying to do.&#8221;