If Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has made one thing clear this offseason, it's that his team is going to respect the national anthem.
Apparently, that rule doesn't apply to Jones, though. In the days after announcing the Cowboys official national anthem policy -- that every player would be standing this season -- Jones was caught on camera wearing a hat and talking while the national anthem was playing.
You can see the clip of Jones during the anthem by clicking here and heading over to WFAA.com.
Although there's no law against wearing a hat during the national anthem, just as there's no law against kneeling, U.S. Code asks that you remove your hat before the anthem is played. After watching Jones' antics during the anthem, long-time Dallas sportscaster Dale Hansen of WFAA decided to call out the Cowboys owner for his hypocrisy in regards to the anthem.
"Jones and his son Stephen were saying the other day that any player who takes a knee and doesn't toe the line during the national anthem won't be playing for the Dallas Cowboys anymore," Hansen said. "It's incredible to me that a player can beat up a woman and play for the Dallas Cowboys. A player can use illegal drugs, time and time again, and still play, but you take a knee to protest the racial injustice in America, and now you've crossed a line that he will not allow."
During an interview at Cowboys training camp on July 25, Jones said the policy for 2018 was simple, "You stand at the anthem, toe on the line."
Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones also added that any player who doesn't follow the policy would likely get cut. If kneeling is disrespectful, then so is wearing a hat, and that's what seemed to irk Hansen.
"Jones loves and respects the national anthem so much that when it was being played before the start of practice Saturday, he left his cap on," Hansen said. "And when he was told about the mistake he was making, he still left his cap on. He who makes the rules, apparently doesn't have to follow them."
The Cowboys have been in training camp for less than a week and Jones has already created a lot of national anthem-related headlines, which might be the why the NFL has apparently asked him to stop talking about the issue. According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the league has ordered Jones not to answer any more questions about the anthem.
The league likely doesn't want Jones to undermine any negotiations currently going on with the NFLPA. Although the NFL doesn't officially have a national anthem policy in place right now, the league is working with the player's association to develop one before the season starts. The two sides met on July 27 and will continue their talks into August after being "encouraged" by discussions.
The league did have a national anthem policy in place for 2018, but back on July 20, the NFL decided to put things on hold.
