Colin Kaepernick
I felt the way people talked to me was like, 'It's OK to be No. 2 in the NFL, a backup,' and things like that. That's never been my approach.
When you step on the field, you want to be a starter. You want to be the person everybody looks to and says, 'If we need a play to be made, let's go to him.'
I'm not incapable of going through things.
I haven't seen a quarterback play a perfect game yet.
I never felt that I was supposed to be white. Or black, either. My parents just wanted to let me be who I needed to be.
My dad, being a businessman, constantly talked to me about carrying myself in a certain way and treating people with respect. And I think that's something that's carried over throughout my life. It's how I deal with certain situations.
I'm not your typical quarterback. I don't like when people say, 'Quarterbacks aren't supposed to run,' or, 'Quarterbacks aren't supposed to work out a certain way.'
Quarterbacks can still have good bodies. I'm always conscious of the stereotype. I want to change what people think. There's a lot more to it than what you see on the field.
You have to train hard and be strong while staying flexible and limber, so I'm trying to find that balance.
Teammates tell me to bring it down a notch in practice or that their hands are hurting. Randy Moss told me I was the first person to ever dislocate one of his fingers.
It is funny to me that because I can run, because I'm athletic, people tend to see that as my only asset.
All my life, I've had these flashbacks, these dreams, nightmares, daymares, like visions, where I relive certain plays. Only the bad plays. I see them over and over, as if somebody's rewinding a tape and forcing me to watch.
I think the biggest part of my game that's underestimated is the mental part of it.
I don't think I can be too hard on myself.
I have a very high expectation for everything I do. And when I go out and compete, I expect myself to make every play.
I don't watch too much TV when it comes to sports or news or things like that.
You have to be able to do everything as a quarterback, and that's not necessarily taking care of your job but making sure you're preparing everyone else to go out and play well. And make sure you have them in the right mindset when they step on the field.
I don't play for job security.
Whether football's here or not, I will be fine. I go out, I play to win.
As far as jeans and shirts, I rock a lot of different things.
I wouldn't say there is one specific designer I rock. It's more of the look of the shirt and what occasion and where I'm wearing it to.
I think being shy or a little bit more mild-mannered is more how you treat people and how you go about your business, not necessarily how you dress or things of that nature.
Victor Cruz just got his deal with Givenchy - amazing. I was so excited for him. That was amazing. So I think there are great opportunities for a lot of athletes out there.
Once I get into the locker room, I turn on stuff to get me hyped up. Mainly, it's a lot of rap music.
When I'm actually getting off the bus, I still have my gospel playing. That's the way-to-the-game kind of music.
To me, I've played full seasons and had success. Mentally, I've been through it before. I'm not incapable of going through this.
I think I'm very good at reading coverage and knowing where I want to go with the ball before the ball is snapped.
When it comes down to it, you're playing football regardless of what offense you're in.
I think, between the tattoos, the way I dress, the way I talk, people don't think it should go together with a franchise quarterback or someone that's leading the team or representing the organization.
At the end of the day, you have to look at, 'Are they knowledgeable? Are they doing their job?' Not what their appearance is.
The NFL is a performance-based business, so you should have to perform to earn some of your money. At the same time, I realize that my success isn't just because of what I do out there.
I have great teammates around me who make plays.
I never weighed myself when I was at my lightest because I didn't want to know.
I don't look like my high school self anymore. I feel like I look more like an adult now.
Training, that's my specialty.
To me, I'm going out there focusing on competing, not worrying about cardio or anything like that.
I trained with a few Olympic runners and jumpers. Just to try to get a little bit faster, a little bit better. Anything I could do to try to get a little bit better and stay ahead of the competition.
There are a lot of details to running that I never even thought about. I just went out and ran. I think I can be faster. I think I can be quicker.
I'm not too big on feelings.
Feelings aren't going to help me win a game.
What other people think of how I play and how I go about things really isn't something I worry about.
Unless you're being carted off, you should be on the field.
You're going to hurt, yes. You're going to have tweaks and problems. But you're a football player; you can play through those.
People are terrified of them to the point where Trump wants to ban all Muslims from coming here, which is ridiculous.
I have great respect for people's right to believe what they want to believe. And I don't think anybody should be prosecuted or judged based on what their beliefs are.
Thankfully, God blessed me with some legs that move pretty good, and we also get to wear pads, so I should be alright.
To try to prey on athletes' livelihoods while one is going through a tough time is embarrassing to me.
I'm going to speak the truth when I'm asked about it. This isn't for look. This isn't for publicity or anything like that. This is for people that don't have the voice.Collection: Voice
America stands for freedom, liberty and justice for all. And it's not happening for all right now.Collection: Justice For All