On Wednesday the NFL approved a new national-anthem policy in response to ongoing player protests that took over the 2017 season.
The new rules dictate that players and personnel should stand for the anthem and that those who wish not to may choose instead to remain in the locker room during the pregame ceremony. Should a player kneel or "not show appropriate respect" for the anthem by whatever definition the league sets, their team will be fined.
President Trump took a victory lap after the news came out, but would later add that he believed new rules did not go far enough and said of players that chose to remain in their locker room "maybe you shouldn't be in the country."
Across the league, players were asked for their reaction to the new policy, Trump's words, and the ongoing conversation surrounding the protests.
You can read some of their responses below.
Malcolm Jenkins
"What NFL owners did today was thwart the players' constitutional rights to express themselves and use our platform to draw attention to social injustices like racial inequality in our country. Everyone loses when voices get stifled."
"While I disagree with this decision, I will not let it silence me or stop me from fighting. The national conversation around race in America that NFL players forced over the past 2 years will persist as we continue to use our voices, our time and our money to create a more fair and just criminal justice system, end police brutality and foster better educational and economic opportunities for communities of color and those struggling in this country."
"For me, this has never been about taking a knee, raising a fist or anyone's patriotism but doing what we can to effect real change for real people. #thefightcontinues"
Source: Twitter
Brandon Marshall
"Disgusting. I say 'disgusting' because of our First Amendment rights. We have freedom of speech, right? Freedom to protest? Because somebody decides to protest something, now have to be kicked out of the country? That's not how things should work, in my opinion. ... Just because somebody disagrees with something, or if I didn't stand for the anthem, or if I don't like what's going on, that's basically him saying I should be kicked out the country."
"We're supposed to have a conversation about things, talk about things, work things through. Everybody is not gonna agree on things, everybody is not gonna have the same opinion on things. So just because somebody disagrees or has an issue with something that's going on in this country, it doesn't mean that they should pack up and leave. That's absurd, in my opinion.''
Source: ESPN
Josh Norman
"[President Donald Trump speaking out and more players protesting] happened ... but I don't know if that's still going to take place or what's going to happen. Who knows? I don't."
Source: ESPN
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