NFL Players are not kneeling during the national anthem these days. Myles Garret, KhaDarel Hodge, Bisi Johnson and more did so in the 2020 season.
The pioneer of the trend of NFL players started with Colin Kaepernick, a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers.
Colin was a lone revolutionist when he started it during the 2016 preseason. Soon after the little spark of fire, several other players joined him in the coming seasons.
The bold comment made by Kaepernick in the media addressing his unwillingness to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses people of color and marginalized communities revolutionized the heart of several co-players.
This resulted in a sensational outcome and divided people’s views regarding the issue, which later took a great space and went through a series of discussions at both government and public levels.
Meaning Behind NFL Players Kneeling
The main reason behind the players sitting on their knees is to show their protest against racial injustice and police brutality against African Americans.
The league-wide protest was stirred in August 2016 by Kaepernick when he talked about how crucial racial discrimination is for him, more important than football itself.
This became a massive mess after President Trump’s belittling remarks and attack on NFL players who knelt during the anthem. In one of his rallies in 2017, he asked NFL owners to fire anyone who disrespected the great national flag and claimed no right to stay in the country.
The players took his comments to the pick, followed by a series of such protests all over the league.
Taking a knee is a symbolic gesture that shows the doers’ disagreement and protest against discrimination and injustice during the national anthem or other similar standings.
This is also referred to as the national anthem protest, which has been adopted by sports players worldwide, including the United Kingdom’s Association of Football and more.
This has also been noticed in several non-sporting protests throughout the world. Even the famous American rapper Eminem knelt during his solo appearance at the Super Bowl Half Time show in February 2022.
Football Players Who Kneeled in the Past
The NFL player’s protest by kneeling commenced during the 2016 preseason games. After two weeks of Kaepernick’s unnoticed attempts, he was finally on the media.
Colin revealed the reasons to the press and was joined by Eric Reid and Seahawks’ Jeremy Lane during the preseason finals. In the first week of the 2016 season, 11 players submitted themselves to the protest.
Brandon Marshall for Denver Broncos also knelt during the anthem and was broadcasted on NBC. The trend was soon widespread and was joined by Jelani Jenkins, Arian Foster, Kenny Stills, and Michael Thomas, all of the Miami Dolphins.
Seth DeValve was the first player to kneel during 2017 preseason games. Most of the 2017 season games were played after President Trump’s disparaging remarks. So, over 200 NFL players sat or knelt as part of the protest.
2017 Season
- 27 players of the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium in London.
- 16 members of the New England Patriots in their game against Houston, Texas.
- 5 members of the Miami Dolphins before their game with the New York Jets.
- The majority of Oakland Raiders and Washington Redskins.
- 32 members of the Denver Broncos and 10 of the Buffalo Bills.
- Everyone in the Dallas Cowboys knelt during the national anthem.
- 10 players from Indianapolis Colts and 20 from the Cleveland Browns took a kneel during “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Lucas Oil Stadium.
2019 Season
Followed by the NFL’s new policy, only three players chose to kneel before a game in the 2019 season. They are:
- Eric Reid was the first player from the Carolina Panthers to take a knee.
- Kenny Stills of Houston, Texas, also kept his feet in protest and said he would do so even if his job were threatened.
- Miami Dolphins Albert Wilson also carried on with the trend.
2020 Season
The league announced to play “Lift Every Voice and Sing” along with the national anthems in the game to respect players’ sentiments and those facing social injustice. But this did not stop them from protesting. The protestors were:
- Alex Okafor of the Kansas City Chiefs
- Myles Garret (Cleveland Browns)
- KhaDarel Hodge (Cleveland Browns)
- Ronnie Harrison (Cleveland Browns)
- Bisi Johnson (Minnesota Vikings)
- Tajae Sharpe (Minnesota Vikings)
- Alexander Mattison (Minnesota Vikings)
- Ameer Abdullah (Minnesota Vikings)
- Jalyn Holmes and Nate Meadors (Minnesota Vikings)
- Teddy Bridgewater and Robby Anderson (Carolina Panthers)
- Multiple players of the Chicago Bears
- Dontari Poe (Dallas Cowboys)
- 12 players from Los Angeles Rams
- Players from Denver Broncos and Tenessee Titans
After the 2020 season, no further protest has been reported till now. The strict implementation of the NFL’s New policy might be one of the reasons.
NFL National Anthem Policy
NFL introduced its new national anthem policy in May 2018, restricting players and sports personnel from taking a knee during the national anthem.
The player’s decision to protest during the anthem on the ground became a tradition after 2016. After a long controversy and debate at various levels, NFL launched its new policy regarding the gesture.
Several people opined that kneeling was disrespectful to the national flag and the nation. But the players had a different view. They prioritized it as a simple gesture against the injustice and brutality of the law-abiding police force.
NFL came under tremendous pressure nationwide and had to make decisions that favored both parties. In that regard, the 32 members of the National Football League came up with new national anthem policies which carried the following principles:
- All team and league personnel on the field shall stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem.
- The Game Operations Manual will be revised to remove the requirement that all players be on the field for the Anthem.
- Personnel who choose not to stand for the Anthem may stay in the locker room or a similar location off the field until after the Anthem has been performed.
- The League will fine a club if its personnel are on the field and do not stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem.
- Each club may develop its own work rules, consistent with the above principles, regarding its personnel who do not stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem.
- The Commissioner will impose appropriate discipline on league personnel who do not stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem.
NFL Kneeling Fines
The release of a policy statement by the NFL in 2018 addressed that they would be fined.
But it deliberately failed to mention how much will be fine or how the team will pay their penalties. The NFL members seem to want the clubs to make their own manual to fine their players.
There was much news regarding NFL clubs talking about 15-Yard Penalty for those who violate the policy but that didn’t come to the enforcement level.
The policy was just made but has never been enforced strictly. Though several players and teams were involved in the protests after introducing the policy, no players or groups have been fined or banned from playing.
The only player, though not banned officially, facing many problems playing is Colin Kaepernick, the instigator of the revolution himself.
After initiating the protest in 2016, Kaepernick was scorned by the league and has been unable to play since then. But he is hustling hard to play during very few remaining years of his game career.
Colin is already 35 now and wants to get back to NFL. He wants the League to judge him by what he can do in the field rather than by the political biases the League possesses.
Other than the Quarterback, no other players or even team have been ostracized in such a manner.