Now Kaepernick is the centerpiece of Nike's advertising campaign.
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The first long-form commercial for that campaign was released Wednesday.
FULL VIDEO: Nike unveils new commercial narrated by Colin Kaepernick
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It will air during the NFL opener Thursday night.
Nike kept their Kaepernick partnership secret from the NFL and many others before Monday's unveil.
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He's currently fighting a collusion case against the league, claiming he's been blacklisted for his stance.
Also on Wednesday, Cam Newton was asked about Kaepernick and the ongoing national discussions.
"I've always respected the man that Colin is," he said. "I've said that since day 1."
He continued: "At the end of the day we all are entitled to our own opinion, we all have freedom of speech and can believe in any and every thing that we want to believe in. So, from man to man, I respect the hell out of him and that's pretty much all I've got to say."