Bengals' Dunlap details offseason discrimination

CINCINNATI — Bengals defensive end Carlos Dunlap said he and other Black NFL players were discriminated against because of their race during an offseason workout.

On Monday, Dunlap recalled an instance in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he and a group of Black players were asked by a park ranger to cease the workout and leave while a group of white NFL players were allowed to continue their drills.

“It was appalling to us and it was very frustrating and it was something that almost made me act out of character,” Dunlap told reporters on Monday.

Dunlap said the incident occurred in late June, one month after George Floyd, who is Black, was killed in Minneapolis in late May when a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than 7 minutes.

According to Dunlap, the two groups of NFL players were separated by two fields. A group of young soccer players, which was comprised of mixed ethnicities, was asked to stop. Dunlap said the Black players were “asked to get off the field aggressively as well.” The park ranger, according to Dunlap, allowed the white group to finish its workout.

“We asked them, why did you demand that we leave the field and go to another field when we explained that we were almost done, literally five to 10 minutes, versus the other group that was able to finish the workout,” Dunlap said. “And he pretty much watched and damn-near cheered them on.”

The Fort Lauderdale parks and recreation department, which oversees the park rangers, could not be immediately reached for comment.