Brandon Marshall’s decision to protest the national anthem may have cost him two sponsors, but the Denver Broncos linebacker has now gained a new one because of it.
Marshall revealed on Wednesday that he is set to sign an endorsement deal with RushCard, a prepaid Visa card that was co-founded by famous music producer Russell Simmons.
“I spoke with Russell Simmons,” Marshall said, according to Pro Football Talk. “They’re endorsing me, The Rush Card and he said he was going to speak with me today. I spoke with him the last two days. He’s going to talk to me today about the parameters of the deal, what it comes with. I lost two, but I gain one.”
Two companies, CenturyLink and Air Academy Credit Union, have terminated their relationship with Marshall after the veteran took a knee during the national anthem in Week 1. Marshall said he knew there could be repercussions for his actions, but he still doesn’t feel he deserved to be dropped.
“I didn’t breach my contract. I didn’t get arrested, I didn’t do anything to defame the team or CenturyLink or Air Academy,” he said. “I just exercised my first amendment rights and they drop me for that. So for Russell Simmons to come up and step in, I think that’s great. I’m proud of what I did because I didn’t do anything that’s wrong or hurtful by any stretch.”
Simmons is the founder of Def Jam, which is considered the most successful rap label of all time. He has been highly involved with social activism in recent years.
Even though Marshall has lost some money with sponsors dropping him, he still recently made a generous pledge to charities. Now that Simmons has reached out, others could do the same.
