NFL bans kneeling during anthem
Those who choose not to stand can stay in the locker room.
DAVIE — The NFL has spoken with a policy designed to end the bitter controversy over national anthem protests.
Now it’s up to Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and coach Adam Gase to enforce the new rules and add a wrinkle or two of their own.
NFL owners, meeting in Atlanta, voted Wednesday to require all team and league staff who are on the field during the anthem to “stand and show respect” for the flag and the song. Those who choose not to stand for the anthem can stay in the locker room or away from the field, although
each club can adopt its own additional rules, provided they don’t conflict with the overall policy.
Violators can be fined by the league.
Multiple Dolphins multi- ple players have knelt during the anthem during the past two seasons to protest social injustice.
Of those players, only receiver Kenny Stills remains on the roster. But the Dol- phins have added receiver Albert Wilson, who knelt in the past as a member of the Kansas City Chiefs.
Stills was not made avail- able to the media Wednes- day.
“I’m pretty sure coach is going to have his say-so on it,” Wilson said shortly after leaving the practice field.
Wilson was reluctant to say much more because he hadn’t had a chance to read the entire statement from the league, and he wanted to hear from Gase.
“Once coach gets with us on it, I’ll pretty much have something else to say after that,” Wilson said.
Appearing at a news conference as the meetings wound down, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said, “We want people to be respectful to the national anthem. We want people to created logistical issues. stand, that’s all personnel, At the height of the conand make sure they treat troversy, President Donald this moment in a respectTrump advocated firing any ful fashion. That’s some- player who didn’t stand thing we think we owe. We during the anthem, which have been very sensitive in a ngered some k ne el ing making sure we give players players, including Michael choices, but we do believe Thomas, now of the New that that moment is importYork Giants. ant and one we are going to “It was unfortunate that focus on.” on-field protests created a
Ross and the Dolphins did false perception among many not issue an immediate statethat thousands of NFL playment Wednesday. ers were unpatriotic,” the
The NFL Players Associa- NFL wrote. “This is not and tion did have something to was never the case.” say, pointing out that it was The league said it would not consulted by the league continue to work with playas it formed the policy. ers “to strengthen our com
“Our union will review munities and advance social the new ‘policy’ and chal- justice,” citing a “unique lenge any aspect of it that is platform” the NFL enjoys inconsistent with the collec- in this country. tive bargaining agreement,” Colin Kaepernick, then the players association said quarterback of the San Franin a statement. cisco 49ers, launched the
New York Jets co-owner controversy by becoming Christopher Johnson said the first to kneel during the he’ll pay any fines his playanthem. He was joined by ers may receive because of safety Eric Reid, and both the anthem policy. remain unsigned today.
The Dolphins have largely Reid recently filed a collugiven players freedom to sion grievance against the express themselves, except league. for a brief period in which Former Dolphins playplayers were told if they ers who protested have also wanted to protest, they had included tight end Julius to do it in the locker room or Thomas, running back Arian tunnel — much like the new Foster and linebacker Jelani policy states. That stance Jenkins. didn’t last long because players said shuttling back and forth from the field to the locker room during pregame