League Wide Protests Follow President Trumps Comments

This Week in NFL news, more controversy. On Saturday, while speaking at a rally, President Donald Trump said if a player decided to take a knee during the national anthem, he would love to see an NFL owner say, “Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out. He’s fired. He’s fired!”

After he made the comments, athlete from the NFL, NBA, and MLB were quick to denounce the president’s comments and before their games on Sunday, decided to show signs of solidarity.

Some teams like the Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers decided to stay in the locker room during the singing of the anthem on Sunday. According to Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, it was to prevent the team from being dragged into a political fight.

Other teams decided to take a different approach with players either locking hands or kneeling. Team owners, who issued statements condemning the president’s remarks, also participated in the protest and locked hands with their players during the anthem.

Also, if you can believe it. Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys (America’s Team) also took a knee last Sunday in the NFL wide protest.

Others, like the Oakland Raiders, decided to seat while the anthem was being played.

Despite the overwhelming show of solidarity by the players and owners, there were a lot of people unhappy with the way the teams handled the situation.
Fans in attendance could be heard booing the players that didn’t stand for the anthem, and some fans were urging the players to stand up while the anthem was being played.

Pittsburgh offensive lineman, Alejandro Villanueva, a former Army Ranger who spent three tours in Afghanistan, was seen standing just outside the tunnel with his hand over his heart while the anthem was being played before their game in Chicago.

According to James Harrison, who said he was surprised Villanueva didn’t stay in the locker room with his teammates, there were no bad feeling in the locker room because Villanueva was a military man. However, Mike Tomlin said he was disappointed in Villanueva’s action because he wanted the whole team to be unified in their response.

Villanueva’s actions apparently went well with the fans because on Monday afternoon, his gear was the best selling at the NFL store.