Colin Kaepernick’s fans have started an online petition to boycott the NFL if the controversial quarterback accused of being unpatriotic goes unsigned by a pro football team this season. They compare him to Muhammad Ali.

The petition, which targets NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and the league's team owners, charges that the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback has been "pretty much blackballed" by the league because of his national anthem protest last football season, according to the Change.org petition.

More than 65,200 people had signed the petition as of Monday morning. The petition originator stated that it will be sent to Goodell and the owners once the signatures top 100,000.

"Never before, since the great Muhammad Ali's refusal to serve in Vietnam in 1967, has an athlete taken such a direct stance highlighting the injustices of people of color – and just like Ali, the reaction to Kaepernick's stance has been met with passionate responses, often times divided by the color line," the petition said.

Kaepernick drew the ire of many NFL fans when he first sat and then took a knee during the national anthem of league games last season as a protest for alleged police brutality against African-Americans.

"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," Kaepernick told NFL Media last August. "To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder."

While the quarterback said he would not continue to protest this season, he remained unsigned.



ESPN reported last week that the latest team to consider Kaepernick, the Baltimore Ravens, was split with coach John Harbaugh and general manager Ozzie Newsome wanting to ink him but not the owner Steve Bisciotti.

Ravens HC John Harbaugh & GM Ozzie Newsome support signing Colin Kaepernick, but have met resistance from owner Steve Bisciotti per sources — Dianna Russini (@diannaESPN) August 2, 2017

Harbaugh's brother, Jim Harbaugh, coached Kaepernick at San Francisco, giving him the starting job over Alex Smith when the team went to the Super Bowl during the 2012-13 season.

The Ravens issued a statement through Newsome, saying that the Ravens were going "through a process" and that Bisciotti had not blocked them signing the quarterback.