Well, if you want to turn a blind eye to the fact that things really took a turn south when he started all this OK, be my guest.
Aye Comrade! Continue to fight the good fight and highlight the role of Emmanual Golds...err I mean Colin Kaepernick to the ills that befall the noble National Football League. It is clearly not a factor that...
More people are eliminating cable/satellite for cheaper, more efficient streaming services.
The NFL charges twice as much for streaming (live) games as other major sports, while charging extra for difference devices, and locking themselves into a single carrier. Oh yea, they charge for an additional service to watch completed games. TLDR: For 1/2 to 1/3 of the price I can watch every MLB game, live or completed, on any device that contains the MLB At-Bat app.
The NFL undermines its marquee players (Brady, Elliot, Peterson, etc.) and teams (Cowboys, Patriots, Saints under bountygate) while sitting on their hands and defending nobodies (Josh Brown).
During the 2000's they altered the rules to encourage more offense through the air, resulting in the blowback of defenses focusing on attacking the quarterback and putting even more importance on that position...
...Which is problematic as the golden era of NFL QB's is coming to an end, as Brees, Brady, Manning(s), Favre, Rodgers, etc. are nearing the end (or have reached it) with no clear heirs in sight.
The NFL has oversaturated itself by spreading its product (Thursday night, London, etc.) thin while an increasingly controversy/click bait obsessed sports media amplifies every NFL mistake.
The NFL is like a box of chocolates...you don't know if you're going to get a gourmet goody or the Thursday Night Ravens/Dolphins game a few weeks ago.
The foot dragging and deflection around head injuries has lowered the participation/interest in youth football, thus decreasing its importance as the national sport of choice.
Roger Goodell.
The officiating continually makes major errors in the most important of moments.
The rules committee continues to drop the ball (pun intended) over the most basic of decisions...such as requiring a receiver to have two hands on the ball, turn, and run through the stadium to the nearest liquor establishment where they have at least 2 drinks of whomever is the primary alcohol sponsor of the NFL at that time.
The primacy of NFL fantasy football has slowly receded amongst the rise of Daily Fantasy Leagues that favor sports that don't contain weaklings that can only play once a week.
The increase in commercial breaks creates for even more of a disjointed user experience, as evidenced by the fact that we now can watch commercials while the skill players get a shot of Gatorade and look at a Surface Pro.
Promoting political and social causes such as military advocacy (thanks to taxpayer money from the Pentagon) and breast cancer awareness, opening itself to the possibility of causes that offends the overly sensitive and PC middle america that serves as the NFL's base of support.
Moving franchises from areas where they had a long standing fan following (San Diego, Bay Area) to places where the citizens could not care less.
I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting, but none of it matters though as long as Kaepernick is around. Right? RIGHT?