Stills: Protests will continue
There was a time when Miami Dolphins receiver Kenny Stills was bothered by the backlash over his decision to kneel on the sideline during the national anthem, his way of following Colin Kaepernick’s lead and protesting social injustice.
He is no longer worried. If anything, his resolve got stronger.
“We’re not going anywhere,” the former Oklahoma receiver said. “It’s not going to change. Activism isn’t something you just kind of get involved in and then turn your back on it.”
Stills was one of two players who kneeled for the anthem in Week 1 around the NFL. Fellow Dolphins receiver Albert Wilson was the other. League-wide, only about 10 players participated in any form of protests.
Stills met with reporters for about 10 minutes Thursday. There was one question about his two touchdown catches against Tennessee in Miami’s 27-20 victory.
The rest of the session revolved almost entirely around kneeling, not catching
Stills went to Miami-area VA Hospitals on Tuesday, along with Wilson and a few other members of the Dolphins organization. Some of the patients were moved to tears, and Stills said he spoke with several veterans privately — most of them understanding where his protests are coming from and what they are about.
“This has never been against the military or the flag or the police,” Stills said. “And so just for them to have the opportunity, for us to have the conversation, for them to approach me and say that, that meant a bunch.”
U.S. Sen. Marco
Rubio, R-Florida, took to Twitter this week to applaud Stills.
“You don’t have to agree with how or why he has chosen to exercise the 1st Amendment before every game to acknowledge the hours he gives voluntarily, on his day off, to serve his fellow Americans,” Rubio tweeted.
Game brings no special emotions for Bradford
Six years before the Rams chose Jared Goff with the No. 1 overall pick to be the savior of a struggling franchise, they tried the same thing with former Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford.
And if Bradford had been running an offense created by the likes of Sean McVay, he might still have that job instead of being on the other sideline Sunday with the Arizona Cardinals.
Bradford faces the team that drafted him No. 1 when the Cards (0-1) travel to the Coliseum to face the Los Angeles Rams (1-0), who have been through franchise relocation and a thorough transformation in the three years since they traded Bradford and his troubled knee from St. Louis to Philadelphia.
After a two-year stop in Minnesota, Bradford moved back into the NFC West this season with Arizona, where he finally gets to face the franchise that employed him for the first five years of his career. But when asked if the Rams’ horned helmets stir up any special emotions, Bradford said: “Not really.”
“I think if it would have happened sooner in my career, maybe there would be more. But the staff there is completely different. There’s only a handful of guys on that roster that were there when I was there, so there’s just really not a lot of connection that’s still there for me.”
Jaguars’ Fournette running again
Leonard Fournette is running again and feeling “better and better” about his strained right hamstring.
The Jacksonville Jaguars running back also is hopeful he will be able to play against the New England Patriots on Sunday.
Fournette cautions, though, that “it’ll be a gametime decision.”
Fournette spoke publicly Thursday for the first time since injuring his hamstring in the season opener at the New York Giants. Fournette says he “kind of felt it pop” on a screen pass in the second quarter. The second-year pro carried nine times for 41 yards before leaving the game for good. He also caught three passes for 14 yards.
Dalton leads Bengals past Ravens
CINCINNATI — Andy Dalton threw four touchdown passes in the first half — three to A.J. Green — against a defense that has bedeviled him throughout his career, and the Cincinnati Bengals held on for a 34-23 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night.
Dalton knocked the Ravens (1-1) out of playoff contention last season. On Thursday, he sliced-and-diced a defense that has more often gotten the upper hand in their AFC North rivalry, leading Cincinnati (2-0) to an early 21-point lead. Dalton finished 24 of 42 for 265 yards, throwing four touchdown passes for only the fifth time in his career. Green set the tone with touchdown catches of 4, 28 and 7 yards on consecutive possessions, a career high.