Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross says all players on his team will stand for the national anthem starting next season.
"All of our players will be standing," Ross told the New York Daily News on Monday.
Wide receiver Kenny Stills, safety Michael Thomas and tight end Julius Thomasknelt during the anthem several times during the 2017 season. Only Stills is likely to be with the Dolphins next season, as Michael Thomas is set to become a free agent later this month and Julius Thomas is likely to be released.
"Initially, I totally supported the players in what they were doing," Ross said. "It's America, and people should be able to really speak about their choices."
But Ross told the newspaper he came to the standing decision because he felt the message being sent by kneeling players was unpatriotic and anti-military, an interpretation that was taken by President Donald Trump.
"When that message changed, and everybody was interpreting it as that was the reason, then I was against kneeling," Ross told the Daily News. "I like Donald [Trump]. I don't support everything that he says. Overall, I think he was trying to make a point, and his message became what kneeling was all about. From that standpoint, that is the way the public is interpreting it. So I think that's really incumbent upon us to adopt that. That's how, I think, the country now is interpreting the kneeling issue."
Todays comments by Ross -
A day after Stephen Ross said all players on his team would stand for the national anthem next season, the Miami Dolphins owner tried to clarify his comments, saying he would not force players' involvement during "The Star-Spangled Banner."
Ross told the New York Daily News on Monday that "all of our players will be standing" in 2018. But in a statement released on Tuesday, Ross said he believed his comments were misconstrued.
"I've shared my opinion with all our players: I'm passionate about the cause of social justice and I feel that kneeling is an ineffective tactic that alienates more people than it enlists," Ross said.
However, he said in the statement: "I have no intention of forcing our players to stand during the anthem."
So he is as F-ed Up as ever.
"All of our players will be standing," Ross told the New York Daily News on Monday.
Wide receiver Kenny Stills, safety Michael Thomas and tight end Julius Thomasknelt during the anthem several times during the 2017 season. Only Stills is likely to be with the Dolphins next season, as Michael Thomas is set to become a free agent later this month and Julius Thomas is likely to be released.
"Initially, I totally supported the players in what they were doing," Ross said. "It's America, and people should be able to really speak about their choices."
But Ross told the newspaper he came to the standing decision because he felt the message being sent by kneeling players was unpatriotic and anti-military, an interpretation that was taken by President Donald Trump.
"When that message changed, and everybody was interpreting it as that was the reason, then I was against kneeling," Ross told the Daily News. "I like Donald [Trump]. I don't support everything that he says. Overall, I think he was trying to make a point, and his message became what kneeling was all about. From that standpoint, that is the way the public is interpreting it. So I think that's really incumbent upon us to adopt that. That's how, I think, the country now is interpreting the kneeling issue."
Todays comments by Ross -
A day after Stephen Ross said all players on his team would stand for the national anthem next season, the Miami Dolphins owner tried to clarify his comments, saying he would not force players' involvement during "The Star-Spangled Banner."
Ross told the New York Daily News on Monday that "all of our players will be standing" in 2018. But in a statement released on Tuesday, Ross said he believed his comments were misconstrued.
"I've shared my opinion with all our players: I'm passionate about the cause of social justice and I feel that kneeling is an ineffective tactic that alienates more people than it enlists," Ross said.
However, he said in the statement: "I have no intention of forcing our players to stand during the anthem."
So he is as F-ed Up as ever.
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