Brees: 'I will never agree with anybody disrespecting' U.S. flag

Amid the ongoing nationwide protests in the wake of the killing of George Floyd, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees hasn't changed his stance on players kneeling during the U.S. national anthem.

Brees, who publicly disagreed with the method of Colin Kaepernick's protests against police brutality and racial injustice in 2016, reiterated his belief in an interview with Yahoo Finance.

"I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country," Brees said. "Let me just tell what I see or what I feel when the national anthem is played and when I look at the flag of the United States.

"I envision my two grandfathers, who fought for this country during World War II - one in the Army and one in the Marine Corps - both risking their lives to protect our country and to try to make our country, and this world, a better place. So, every time I stand with my hand over my heart looking at that flag and singing the national anthem, that's what I think about."

Brees continued: "Is everything right with our country right now? No, it's not. We still have a long way to go. But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart, is it shows unity. It shows that we are all in this together, we can all do better, and that we are all part of the solution."

Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas seemingly responded to Brees' comments in a series of tweets.

Although Brees said in 2016 that he agreed with the message of Kaepernick's protests, he considered his method disrespectful to the U.S. flag.

Kaepernick initially sat during the U.S. anthem as part of his protests, which eventually included several other NFL players. He began to kneel instead after speaking to former Green Beret and Seattle Seahawks long snapper Nate Boyer.

Some of the world's biggest sports icons have addressed racial injustice following the death of Floyd last week.