Former NFL Star Comments On Protests
Former Minnesota Vikings captain and University of Minnesota football standout Jack Brewer is sharply criticizing Minneapolis leadership, accusing city officials of shielding illegal migrant “thugs” while undermining federal law enforcement during a period of escalating unrest.
Speaking to Fox News Digital amid violent demonstrations in the city, Brewer described Minneapolis as a place detached from reality and called for decisive federal intervention.
“There is something wrong in Minneapolis. We need a city-wide behavioral health assessment. People have completely lost reality,” Brewer said. He urged President Donald Trump to deploy the National Guard, impose curfews, and restore consequences for attacks on law enforcement, arguing that officers should be able to do their jobs and return home safely to their families.
Brewer, who played in the NFL from 2002 to 2006 with the Vikings, Giants, Eagles, and Cardinals, framed Democratic opposition to Immigration and Customs Enforcement as politically motivated. According to him, ICE enforcement threatens a key constituency. “We’re deporting their voters. That’s part of what’s happening, and it’s blowing up their whole plan,” he said.
The former safety’s remarks are notable given his past relationship with the city. In 2018, Brewer was presented with the key to Minneapolis by Mayor Jacob Frey, a gesture that now stands in stark contrast to his current condemnation of city leadership. Brewer accused Minneapolis authorities of actively protecting violent individuals and criticized what he described as an open-door immigration policy that has eroded public safety.
“You can’t allow people to come into your country who don’t carry the same morals and values that you do,” Brewer said, citing his humanitarian work abroad. After visiting Guatemala in February 2025 to meet deported migrant families, he argued that cultural differences matter and warned that importing incompatible values carries consequences.
“Minneapolis is protecting these thugs. It’s unbelievable,” he said, asserting that city leaders have prioritized political alliances over civic order.
Brewer also launched a direct attack on Mayor Frey, accusing him of abandoning American cultural and Christian values in pursuit of political favor. His language was blunt and unsparing, reflecting deep frustration with the direction of the city he once represented as an athlete and community figure.
Since retiring from football, Brewer has built a career in finance and philanthropy, founding the Jack Brewer Foundation and serving in leadership roles at policy organizations focused on education, family stability, and civic renewal.