Colin Kaepernick is stoked his former teammate is continuing on with the national anthem protests this year ... shouting out Panthers safety Eric Reid as "unwavering" for carrying on the kneeling.
"Unrelenting. Unflinching. Unapologetic," Kaepernick added. "Love you Brother!"
Kaepernick first started kneeling during the 'Star Spangled Banner' back in 2016 when he was the San Francisco 49ers' quarterback. He was later joined in that protest by then-teammate Reid.
After Kap was cut by the Niners ... Reid continued to protest in the NFL -- even after he was signed by Carolina last season.
But, after Reid and Kap both settled their collusion cases against the NFL earlier this year ... many wondered if Eric would keep up the protests.
Turns out, he will -- telling reporters this week at Panthers camp, "If a day comes that I feel like we’ve addressed those issues, and our people aren’t being discriminated against or being killed over traffic violations, then I’ll decide it’s time to stop protesting."
"I haven’t seen that happen."
Colin is clearly loving the message, 'cause he shouted out Reid on his social media page.
Even Kaepernick's girlfriend, Nessa, posted to her social media page praising the defensive star for keeping up the kneeling.
"Always clear and focused on the truth," Nessa wrote. "We love you ... #imwithkap #imwithereid #takeaknee"