The higher-ups in the NFL are desperate to move on from the issue of protests during the national anthem, but in the meantime, commissioner Roger Goodell has made his thoughts on the issue clear.
Videos by FanBuzz
It doesn't appear that the league will make any mandates regarding the anthem, at least right now, but Goodell didn't mince his words when discussing his expectations after the October meeting between NFL owners and players in New York.
"We believe our players should stand for the national anthem," Goodell said, as passed on by Andrew Siciliano.
Roger Goodell: "We believe our players should stand for the national anthem."
— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) October 18, 2017
The NFL's head honcho also said that he believes the anthem is an important part of the NFL and football as a whole, though notably, he did seem to downplay the impact of the protests — or at least the amount of participants.
Goodell: (Anthem) “is an important part of our game.” Says “six or seven players” are protesting. #NFL
— Vic Carucci (@viccarucci) October 18, 2017
Saying that only "six or seven" players have participated in the protests is rather disingenuous from Goodell, who certainly has to be feeling the heat regarding this issue after NFL ratings have rapidly declined. With that said, he did also relay that he believes that players aren't trying to be disrespectful to the flag, a sentiment that is true (the flag or the anthem isn't what is being protested), so it will be interesting to see how his comments go over with the players on the field.
Far more than seven players have protested league-wide, and there's a good chance far more than seven do so again this weekend.
Goodell's latest comments come after President Donald Trump admonished the league yet again for their indecision to force players to stand.
The NFL has decided that it will not force players to stand for the playing of our National Anthem. Total disrespect for our great country!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 18, 2017
Trump's comments on the national anthem over the past several weeks have escalated the issue for the NFL, putting the league at the forefront of all news outlets as the President continues the hammer the league and the protesting players.
