The NFL is going to play the black national anthem before all the Week 1 games. They claim it is in respect to free speech and expression.
But here's some NFL "Refresher" History...history not often reported or leaked to the ticket holders. It helps to better understand when and why the public’s respect for the NFL organization started to crumble.
- In 2012 the NFL had an issue with Tim Tebow kneeling before each game to pray, they also had an issue with Tebow wearing John 3:16 as part of his eye-black to avoid glare, and made him take it off.
- In 2013 the NFL fined Brandon Marshall for wearing green cleats to raise awareness for people with mental health disorders.
- In 2014 Robert Griffin III (RG3) entered a post-game press conference wearing a shirt that said "Know Jesus Know Peace" but was forced to turn it inside out by an NFL uniform inspector before speaking at the podium.
- In 2015 DeAngelo Williams was fined for wearing "Find the Cure "eye black for breast cancer awareness.
- In 2015 William Gay was fined for wearing purple cleats to raise awareness for domestic violence. (Not that the NFL has a domestic violence problem..).
- In 2016 the NFL prevented the Dallas Cowboys from wearing a decal on their helmet in honor of 5 Dallas Police officers killed in the line of duty.
- 2016 the NFL threatened to fine players who wanted to wear cleats to commemorate the 15th anniversary of 9/11.
So tell me again how the NFL supports free speech and expression. It seems quite clear based on these facts that the NFL has taken a position against any action by NFL players demonstrating RESPECT for God, social causes such as mental health, cancer, domestic violence, for cops killed arbitrarily, for being cops, or for the Memory of 9/11.
BUT they will allow demonstrations of DISRESPECT for our National Flag, our National Anthem, for America , and for the American People, if it will help mollify a particular group and its supporters. That is who and what the NFL now has shown itself to be.
