49ers' Reid: NFL 'on the path' to what Kaepernick wanted from protests

San Francisco 49ers safety Eric Reid met with former teammate Colin Kaepernick in New York earlier this week before attending league meetings and reports that the quarterback is "in a good place."

"I don't want to talk too much about that out of respect for his case. But he's in good spirits," Reid said to Nick Wagoner of ESPN.

Kaepernick was the first player to protest racial inequality and police brutality by sitting and then kneeling for the national anthem last season before he was joined by Reid.

Kaepernick wasn't among the dozen players invited to attend league meetings on anthem protests earlier this week, but Reid was able to share some of Kaepernick's ideas during the nearly four-hour discussion Tuesday.

"A couple of the things that we discussed were his idea, things that we talked about last year when we started this," Reid said. "It's cool to see how it kind of comes full circle to give those ideas in the meeting with the owners."

The NFLPA came away encouraged after the lengthy conversation with team owners and league executives and Reid concurred.

"It was a start, had a lot of good conversation, and I think we're on the path to what Colin and I were looking for when we first started protesting," Reid said.

"The NFL has agreed to commit to a long-term plan and use their platform to continue to raise awareness around the issues that affect our country and help us feel like we don't need to protest. So we're (going in) the right direction."

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett, who joined the protests in the preseason, said on Wednesday that a team must first sign Kaepernick before discussions on anthem protests can truly move forward.