NFL players and fans weren't the only ones caught off guard when commissioner Roger Goodell released a video statement saying the league condemns racism and stating, "We, the National Football League, believe black lives matter."
According to Mark Maske of the Washington Post, team owners were "mostly taken by surprise" when the video was released on Friday following a demand by some of football's most prominent players for the NFL to acknowledge systemic racism.
This article will be updated to provide more information on this story as it becomes available.