In addition to being one of the greatest soccer players of all time, Abby Wambach also made an impact as an advocate for women's rights. This past weekend, Wambach was impressed with the athletes, especially those in the NFL, who put themselves out there for social progress. 

"I'm really proud of the guys that want to step up ... or rather kneel ... and make a statement because I think it's so easy to just want to blend into the wallpaper," Wambach says. "But right now, where we are with our climate and our culture, vanilla is not what is required to represent the feelings and the beliefs of all, and your team, there are a lot of guys that respectfully disagree with kneeling and I think that's important to recognize as well. Those people's feelings matter too. We all come from different places. We need to start talking. We need to get on the same page and as soon as we start doing that, respectfully, peacefully, like these guys did yesterday, then I think that's when real change will actually start happening.

Abby Wambach

"I think it's the most important for white athletes to get onboard. It was [MLK] Jr. that talked about the moderate white, that's the one that he feared the most. It wasn't the crazy one, it wasn't the most silent one, it was the one that's in the middle, that's like apathetic. I want any of my friends that are going through any sort of discrimination to feel like they have an ally in me. I'm a gay athlete, I know what it's like to feel discriminated against. However, I think that in order to get anywhere, we need the white males' support and I think that the NFL did something really big yesterday and hopefully it's one small step in a giant war."

Wambach, who retired in December 2015, says she wishes she could have done more for initiatives like gaining equal pay for women at the international level. But she is still active in philanthropy and can spend more time being an activist without needing time to focus on training.

"We got to keep the conversation going," she says. "As soon as you get quiet, as you soon as you get silent on things that are important to you, you become a part of the problem. If you're not saying something that you believe in, if you're not fighting injustice in a way that you see that it's happening, then you're actually part of the problem."

Wambach spoke to ThePostGame at the Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis' 32nd Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner. Founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Nick Buoniconti, whose son, Marc, sustained a spinal cord injury during a college football game, the organization is the fundraising arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. Other stars in attendance included David Ortiz, Simone Biles, Jason Taylor, Rick Barry and Alonzo Mourning. Bob Costas served as emcee.

-- Follow Jeff Eisenband on Twitter @JeffEisenband. Like Jeff Eisenband on Facebook.