While the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick would like to blame racism as the cause for why he’s still without a team, it’s evident to the rest of us that the NFL doesn’t exactly have a problem with hiring African-Americans.

Even if Kaepernick’s silent protest in taking a knee during the national anthem is the reason the NFL lost interest in the man, it’s hardly evidence of “racism.” Given how wildly unpopular Kaepernick’s stunt was, it makes no sense that a business would mimic the opinions of their audience to avoid alienating them.

Regardless, while Kaepernick’s actions contributed to his difficulty in finding a new team to take him on, his actions may not have driven the final nail in his career’s coffin, according to the former Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis.

As the Daily Wire reported, earlier this month, Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy explained that Kaepernick’s play simply isn’t good enough for a team to sign him considering all the “chaos” he brings; which McCoy said can tear apart a team.

And now former Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis is blowing a hole in the narrative, too.

According to Lewis, the Ravens were going to sign the controversial quarterback until his girlfriend, radio host Ness Diab, decided to tweet a racist meme of Lewis on August 3; Diab compared the football legend to Samuel L. Jackson’s character in Django Unchained hugging owner Steve Bisciotti, compared to Leonardo Dicaprio’s character in the film.

🎯 @raylewis pic.twitter.com/N9k7nDgmDh

— NESSA (@nessnitty) August 3, 2017

“We were going to close the deal to sign him,” Lewis said on Tuesday’s Inside the NFL. “Steve Bisciotti said, ‘I want to hear Colin Kaepernick speak to let me know that he wants to play football.'”

“And it never happens because that picture comes up the next day,” added the former NFL star.

“[Kaepernick’s] girl goes out and put out this racist gesture and doesn’t know we are in the back office about to try to get this guy signed,” Lewis explained. “Steve Bisciotti has said it himself: ‘How can you crucify Ray Lewis when Ray Lewis is the one calling for Colin Kaepernick?'”

So I guess technically, racism is to blame for Kaepernick remaining unsigned… it just wasn’t coming from the NFL.

[Note: This post was written by Matt Palumbo. He is a co-author of the new book A Paradoxical Alliance: Islam and the Left, and can be found on Twitter @MattPalumbo12]