Week 3 of the NFL season featured a large number of NFL players taking knees and protesting/demonstrating during the national anthem before their respective games began. It was largely in response to vitriolic comments made by President Donald Trump last Friday.
As expected, Trump, who reportedly was thrilled with how his feud with the NFL was going, continued to tweet about the anthem over the weekend. On Saturday he took to the Internet and noted that everyone needs to stand for the anthem.
Very important that NFL players STAND tomorrow, and always, for the playing of our National Anthem. Respect our Flag and our Country!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 30, 2017
Also as expected, that did not happen. Three Dolphins players -- Kenny Stills, Michael Thomas and Julius Thomas -- all took knees during the anthem with Miami squaring off against the Saints in London.
Dolphins players kneeling during national anthem. Kenny Stills, Michael Thomas, Julius Thomas pic.twitter.com/KJXAHbCMWP
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) October 1, 2017
Three Dolphins took a knee this morning: Julius Thomas, Michael Thomas & Kenny Stills. pic.twitter.com/Tr5z95yGjQ
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) October 1, 2017
The Cowboys drew favorable reviews from Trump, who claimed he spoke to Jerry Jones about the anthem situation, for their decision to kneel prior to the anthem and then link arms while standing.
Trump was hoping, it appears, that everyone in the NFL would take that stance. It was not going to happen: there were going to be people who protested the inequality that exists in America. (Which, by the way, is the original purpose of the protest, not the actual tweets from the president.)
There will continue to be players who exercise their right to protest even though multiple teams have agreed that they would prefer to act in a unified fashion. The Saints, for instance, issued a statement through Drew Brees saying the team would kneel before the anthem and then stand.
They did just that on Sunday and multiple other teams will likely do it as well. But expect players to continue to kneel regardless of the president's request.