NFL teams take knee, stay off field for anthem
Four years after Colin Kaepernick began kneeling, scores of players on Sunday once again used the platform to make statements.
the Falcons and Seahawks took a knee after the opening kickoff Sunday. More on the protests,
Four years after Colin Kaepernick first began kneeling during the national anthem as a means of protesting police brutality and racial injustice, NFL players and teams once again used the platform to make statements.
In Sunday’s early games for Week 1, the Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia Eagles, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars remained off the field for the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The Houston Texans became the first team to stay in the locker room for the anthem in Thursday’s kickoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs. They also did not take the field for “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” which the NFL said this offseason would be played before every game in the opening weekend.
The Dolphins announced Thursday they would not be on the field for either song.
“Before the media starts wondering and guessing, they just answered all your questions,” Dolphins coach Brian Flores said. “We’ll just stay inside.”
Several players from the Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings took a knee during the anthem, as did Indianapolis Colts coach Frank Reich.
In a statement posted on Twitter, the Colts said, “We were not protesting the flag, the anthem, or the men and women who wear the uniform. The timing of this action is meant to highlight that the presence, power and oppression of racism remains inconsistent with the unity and freedoms of what it means to be an American.”
The Seahawks and Falcons had the most striking of the day’s gestures. As Seattle’s Jason Myers kicked the ball through the end zone to open Seattle’s season at Atlanta. No one else on the field moved.
Instead, the Seahawks and Falcons dropped to one knee where they stood.
The teams also wore armbands honoring civil rights leader John Lewis.
“We’re taking this moment and making it a movement, not just as a race, a community or a team, but as a nation,” Falcons defensive end Steven Means said in a statement issued by the team. “It’s time to stand up, rise up and vote.”
Lewis, the Georgia Congressman who died in July, was named an honorary captain for the game. The Falcons also wore shirts with his quote: “The Vote is the most powerful, nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society.”
While fans were absent everywhere except Jacksonville because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Minnesota Vikings hosted the family of George Floyd, who died in May in a videotaped killing that sparked national protests over police brutality against Black men.
Vikings players locked arms in the end zone about a half-hour before their game against Green Bay for “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the song unofficially known as the Black national anthem.
Ten or so of Floyd’s relatives were then shown on the stadium video board from their perch in the upper concourse near the Gjallarhorn.
The symbol of Norse mythology, which the Vikings took their name from, had been sounded before every game since 2007.
On Sunday, it remained silent.
“We hope in silencing the Gjallarhorn today we can continue to call attention to these silenced voices and collectively work toward a better, more just society,” the team said.
Falcons owner Arthur Blank and Patriots owner Robert Kraft joined their teams as they lined up on the goal line when “Lift Every Voice and Sing” was played. Quarterback Cam Newton, making his New England debut against Miami, appeared to be singing along.