Dolphins guard James Daniels brought up the ‘illegal’ mass deportations occurring in the United States as he downplayed the Achilles injury he is recovering from.
Daniels, who joined the Dolphins this offseason, is working his way back from an Achilles injury suffered last fall while he was with the Steelers.
And when asked about his own challenges, he attempted to put things in perspective as he discussed the immigration raids in Los Angeles.
‘I mean, I realize I’m in a great position,’ he told reporters. ‘You know, Achilles, yes it’s unfortunate, but there are people in way worse positions, you know.’
‘I think, like especially with what’s happening in [Los Angeles], you know like people’s parents, people’s grandparents are being deported illegally, you know.
‘Like, I don’t have to worry about my mom getting deported or my dad getting deported or my wife getting deported, you know. And I’ve played a long time. I’ve made decent money. And so, there’s a lot bigger issues that people have on their plate. So for me, going through an Achilles injury is pretty easy.’
Miami Dolphins guard James Daniels described the ongoing deportations as ‘illegal’
President Donald Trump’s policy of ordering mass deportations affected LA this week
Daniels is entering his eighth year in the NFL after stints with the Bears and Steelers.
He signed a three-year, $24million deal with Miami this offseason and has over $58million in career earnings, per Spotrac.
His comments come amid a week of mass deportations and subsequent protests in Los Angeles, with President Trump continuing his stern focus on immigration.
The president even deployed troops to the area as some rioters have lit cars on fire.
However, the Trump administration later pumped the brakes on its mass deportation agenda, telling ICE officials to pause raids on farms, hotels and restaurants,
The significant update was reported by the New York Times, who cited an internal email and three US officials familiar with the situation.
Trump also acknowledged on his Truth Social platform hat some of the deportations he’s ordered has hurt industries in agricultural, hospitality and food sectors.
Border Patrol personnel deploy tear gas during a demonstration over the dozens detained in an operation by federal immigration authorities
Protestors have taken to the streets amid the immigration raids in Los Angeles
‘Our great Farmers and people in the Hotel and Leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace,’ he said in a Truth Social post on Thursday morning.
‘We must protect our Farmers, but get the CRIMINALS OUT OF THE USA. Changes are coming!’ he added.
Trump has received criticism in certain corners for his immigration crackdowns, though a large portion of Americans are on board with his policies.
A CBS News/YouGov poll conducted last week found that a 55 percent majority liked the goal’s of Trump’s deportation program, while 44 percent said they liked how he was approaching it.
