49ers defensive end Nick Bosa apologized for his social media activity Friday and called his tweet criticizing Colin Kaepernick “a bad decision.”
Bosa referred to the former 49ers starting quarterback as a “clown” in August 2016 after Kaepernick took a knee for the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial injustice. The 49ers made Bosa the second overall choice Thursday.
“No, it wasn’t directed towards that,” Bosa said, via Matt Maiocco of NBCSportsBayArea.com. “It’s not like I’m saying his stance and what he was doing. That’s not what I was talking about at all.
“It was a specific thing that happened and me as a young kid, [with a] thought popping into my head and, boom, just decided to tweet it out. Bad decision. I respect what he’s done. If it empowers anybody, then he’s doing a good thing. I apologize for that.”
Bosa vows to “think a lot more” before posting on social media. Before the draft, he scrubbed his social media of his conservative views, including tweets praising President Trump, admitting it was prompted by the possibility of being drafted by San Francisco.
Black Sports Online posted a thread showing Bosa followed multiple social media accounts with white nationalist leanings. Bosa also has criticized Beyonce’s music as “complete trash” and called Black Panther the “worst Marvel movie,” prompting some to question whether his comments were attacks against black culture.
Now, Bosa has landed in one of the most liberal cities in the country.
“I definitely made some insensitive decisions throughout my life, and I’m just excited to be here with a clean slate,” Bosa said. “Sorry if I hurt anybody. I definitely didn’t intend for that to be the case. I think me being here is even better for me as a person because I don’t think there’s anywhere, any city, that you could really be in that would help you grow as much as this one will.
“I’m going to be surrounded by all different kinds, so I’m going to grow as a person, and I’m going to be on my own. In college, you still have that support system around you. Now I’m here, I’m going to be on my own. I’m going to grow up and learn a lot of new things.”
