Trump's criticisms spark protests at NFL games
President Donald Trump's comments about owners firing players who kneel during the national anthem sparked a mass increase in such protests around the National Football League Sunday, as about 150 players sat, knelt or raised their fists in defiance during early games.
A week ago, just six players protested.
As he prepared to board Air Force One to return to Washington from New Jersey on Sunday, Trump said the players protesting the anthem were “very disrespectful to our country” and called again on owners to stop what he considers unpatriotic displays in America's most popular sport.
“This has nothing to do with race,” Trump said. “This has to do with respect for our country.”
The NFL and its players, often at odds, have been united in condemning the president's criticisms. One of Trump's biggest supporters in the NFL, Patriots owner Robert Kraft, joined the chorus of criticism of the president when he expressed “deep disappointment” with Trump.
“I like Bob very much. He's my friend. He gave me a Super Bowl ring a month ago. So he's a good friend of mine and I want him to do what he wants to do,” Trump said. “We have a great country. We have great people representing our country, especially our soldiers our first responders and they should be treated with respect.
“And when you get on your knee and you don't respect the American flag or the anthem.”
Defensive star Von Miller was among the majority of Denver Broncos who took a knee in Buffalo Sunday, where Bills running back LeSean McCoy stretched during the “Star Spangled Banner.”
“I felt like it was an attack on us,” Miller, who normally steers clear of politics and social issues, said of Trump's comments.
In Chicago, the Pittsburgh Steelers stayed in the tunnel except for one player, Army veteran Alejandro Villanueva, who stood outside with a hand over his heart. Both the Seahawks and Titans stayed inside until after the national anthem was over in Nashville, a throwback to the pre-2009 NFL when teams, not the league, set pre-game policy regarding players standing on the sideline for the anthem.
A handful of NFL players have refused to stand during the anthem to protest several issues, including police brutality. But that number ballooned Sunday following Trump's two-day weekend rant that began with the president calling for NFL protesters to be fired and continued Saturday with the president rescinding a White House invitation for the NBA champion Golden State Warriors over star Stephen Curry's criticism of Trump.
Tom Brady was among the New England Patriots who locked arms in solidarity in Foxborough, Mass. Aaron Rodgers did the same with his teammates in Green Bay.
The president's comments Friday night and Saturday turned the anthems — usually sung during commercials — into must-watch television shown live by the networks and Yahoo!, which streamed the game in London. In some NFL stadiums, crowds booed or yelled at players to stand. There was also some applause.
NFL players, coaches, owners and executives used the anthems to show solidarity in their defiance to Trump's criticism.
In Detroit, anthem singer Rico Lavelle took a knee at the word “brave,” lowering his head and raising his right fist into the air. In Nashville, anthem singer Meghan Linsey, took a knee as she finished singing.
Jets Chairman and CEO Christopher Johnson, whose brother, Woody, is the ambassador to England and one of Trump's most ardent supporters, called it “an honor and a privilege to stand arm-in-arm unified with our players during today's national anthem” in East Rutherford, N.J.
The issue reverberated across the Atlantic, where about two dozen players took a knee during the playing of the U.S. anthem at Wembley Stadium.
“We stand with our brothers,” Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs said. “They have the right and we knelt with them today. To protest, non-violent protest, is as American as it gets, so we knelt with them today to let them know that we're a unified front.”
