Everything you need to know about NFL protests during the national anthem

In Aug. 2016, Colin Kaepernick sat on the bench while the national anthem played during a preseason game for the San Francisco 49ers.

It went unnoticed at first for two games before a photo from Jennifer Lee Chan of Niners Nation showed the quarterback sitting on the bench during the anthem in the 49ers’ third preseason game of 2016.

Kaepernick told the media he chose to sit to protest the oppression of people of color in the United States and ongoing issues with police brutality.

The former 49ers quarterback gave a rare interview in Week 5, with CBS’ Jason La Canfora. He talked about wanting to play still, his camp reaching out to the Titans (who ultimately went with Brandon Weeden) and why he hasn’t spoken out more as the protest and the controversy around them have continued.

More than a year later, the action taken by the quarterback has taken on a life of its own. Several players throughout the NFL joined Kaepernick’s cause — and when President Donald Trump took aim at owners for not firing players who kneeled — the conversation was renewed and reinvigorated, but with a different tone.

With pregame protests dominating much of the sports headlines, we want to do our best to answer any questions you might have:

After the media took notice of Kaepernick sitting for the national anthem during a preseason game on Aug. 26, he addressed reporters with his full thoughts and reasoning two days later on Aug. 28.

Why Kaepernick sat: “I’m going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed,” Kaepernick said. “To me, this is something that has to change. When there’s significant change and I feel that flag represents what it’s supposed to represent, and this country is representing people the way that it’s supposed to, I’ll stand.

“This stand wasn’t for me. This is because I’m seeing things happen to people that don’t have a voice, people that don’t have a platform to talk and have their voices heard, and effect change. So I’m in the position where I can do that and I’m going to do that for people that can’t.”

His decision to sit during the national anthem drew criticism, though. Many felt and still feel it was disrespectful to the United States, its flag, and its military.

”I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country,” Kaepernick said. “I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. That’s not happening.

“People are dying in vain because this country isn’t holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody. That’s something that’s not happening. I’ve seen videos, I’ve seen circumstances where men and women that have been in the military have come back and been treated unjustly by the country they fought have for, and have been murdered by the country they fought for, on our land. That’s not right.”

Why Kaepernick began to kneel instead: After meeting with former Green Beret and brief NFL long snapper Nate Boyer to discuss his thoughts on the manner of the protest, Kaepernick adjusted his method by kneeling during the national anthem instead of sitting. He was joined by 49ers safety Eric Reid, who also took a knee.

”We were talking to [Boyer] about how can we get the message back on track and not take away from the military, not take away from fighting for our country, but keep the focus on what the issues really are,” Kaepernick said. “And as we talked about it, we came up with taking a knee. Because there are issues that still need to be addressed and it was also a way to show more respect to the men and women who fight for this country.”

From there, other players around the NFL joined Reid and Kaepernick in the protest.

After Kaepernick’s protest gained attention on Aug. 26, other players around the NFL joined him during the 2016 season, along with high schoolers, national anthem singers, and other athletes.

More protests were demonstrated during Week 3 of the 2017 season after Trump said NFL owners needed to fire the “sons of bitches” who “disrespected the flag.” The protests below happened after those statements.

In the months after Trump’s inauguration in January, he made a few comments about Kaepernick. Trump bragged in March that his Twitter account was the reason that no team had signed the quarterback, but his most scathing comments came in September when he attacked all players opting to protest during the national anthem.

“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, out, he’s fired!’ You know, some owner is going to do that.” Trump said at a rally in Huntsville, Ala. “He’s gonna say, ‘That guy disrespects our flag, he’s fired.’ And that owner, they don’t know it. They don’t know it. They’re friends of mine, many of them. They don’t know it. They’ll be the most popular person, for a week. They’ll be the most popular person in the country.”

A day later, he doubled down on his comments with a series of tweets:

His tweets continued through the remainder of the weekend — including a call for a rule that would require players to stand, praise for a crowd that booed the Cowboys for kneeling prior to the national anthem, and multiple calls for fans to stop watching or attending NFL games.

Trump also took aim at the NFL’s television ratings and attendance, although many of his claims weren’t correct.

After Trump’s comments at the Alabama rally on Sept. 22, the NFL and NFL Players Association both responded on Sept. 23. But the loudest response came from a long list of current and former NFL players who took to social media to criticize the president for his comments.

With Trump fanning the flames, the majority of the 32 teams in the NFL released statements from owners. While the protest started by Kaepernick aimed to combat systemic racism and police brutality, the second wave of solidarity in September came under the branding of “unity.”

Among the statements released by teams, only the Seahawks mentioned “injustice that has plagued people of color” in the United States. Later, the team launched the Seahawks Players Equality and Justice for All Action Fund to support education and leadership programs addressing equality and justice.

Many teams linked arms during the playing of the national anthem in Week 3, while other teams — the Titans, Seahawks and Steelers — stayed in the locker room (with the exception of Pittsburgh’s Alejandro Villanueva).

There was also a notable uptick in players kneeling during the national anthem following Trump’s comments.

The “unity” demonstrations were less widespread in Week 4. The Ravens kneeled in prayer before the national anthem and were booed by fans in Baltimore. Players on several teams kneeled during the national anthem, including the 49ers, Dolphins and Bills. Here’s a list of the various activities and demonstrations from Week 4.

Kaepernick became a free agent in March when he opted out of his deal with the 49ers, with the team prepping to release him later in the month. While he visited with the Seahawks in May, Kaepernick is still a free agent, despite his play warranting a spot on a roster.

But even if Kaepernick isn’t on an NFL sideline, the protest movement he started doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere anytime soon.

Pence left the Colts game, and sent out a string of tweets explaining that it was because several 49ers players took a knee during the national anthem.

In his string of tweets, Pence finished with a prepared statement, which led many to believe it was a PR stunt.

President Donald Trump would later tweet that same afternoon that he asked Pence to leave the stadium if players took a knee.

The 49ers were the team of Colin Kaepernick that started the entire movement, where his teammate Eric Reid was one of the first to join him. Reid, who still plays for the 49ers and kneels, along with many other of his 49er teammates, said after the game he felt it was a PR stunt.

On the same day that Mike Pence left the Colts’ game against the 49ers, Jerry Jones essentially said what Trump wanted him to say. It was that any player who “disrespects the flag” will not play.

The Cowboys have yet to have a player kneel during the anthem since Kaepernick started it in 2016.

Owners and league personnel met with NFLPA representatives and players to discuss the protests and the meaning behind them. Owners were expected to vote on a proposed new rule that, if passed, would have required players to stand for the national anthem.

As it turned out, there wasn’t even a vote on a rule change.

Goodell said that he believes players should not protest during the anthem.

“We believe everyone should stand for the national anthem, it’s an important part of our game,” Goodell said in a press conference.

Players will still be able to use their platform to protest police brutality and racial oppression without fear of punishment from the league.

Eric Reid joined his former teammate Colin Kaepernick in kneeling during the anthem last season. He will continue to kneel.

“We started this to raise awareness and to effectuate change,” Reid said, via The MMQB. “We’re on the path to make the change we think we can make, we are just not there yet.”

Michael Bennett will also continue to sit.

“I plan on sitting down,” Bennett said, via Seattle PI’s Michael-Shawn Dugar. “Like I said, I continue to do what I been doing. The consequences are the consequences.”