The NFL owners are beginning the annual owners meetings this week and the hottest topic on the discussion table is what, if anything, should change in regards to league policy surrounding the national anthem.
Some owners are expected to argue in favor of keeping players in the locker room during the flag presentation and singing of the Star-Spangled Banner. Others will advocate to make standing for the anthem a mandatory requirement that is punishable if it’s not followed. Another option that some feel appropriate is to change nothing and let the players utilize their platform pregame.
Most notably, Houston Texans owner Bob McNair has made his disgust with the protests unequivocal. He has previously made known that he is not interested in having anthem protesters on his team. (RELATED: Dolphins, Texans Not Interested In Anthem Kneelers)
McNair said, “We’re going to deal with it in such a way that people will understand we want everybody to respect our country, respect our flag. Our playing field, that’s not the place for political statements. That’s not the place for religious statements. It’s the place for football. That’s what we need to be doing.”
The Texans owner’s comments were not met without some pushback, though.
New York Jets managing owner Christopher Johnson said, “I can’t speak to how other people run their teams, but I just think that trying to forcibly get the players to shut up is a fantastically bad idea.”
Johnson also made it clear he thinks stifling players and forcing them to remain in the locker room during the anthem is a bad idea.
Another owner, Jim Mora of the Giants, made his feelings clear about the situation when he said that the owners needed to come to a consensus by the spring meetings which happens in May.
Dating back to the beginning of Colin Kaepernick’s protests in the 2016 preseason, each owner has responded differently. McNair has been one of the most vocal owners arguing its disrespect to the country and the military.
The NFL has a major problem on its hands, and if it isn’t resolved this season, ratings could drop even further than they have over the past couple years.
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