Throw the flag on the weak owners

The idea that the NFL is only implementing its new national anthem policy because of falling ratings and public pressure is exactly how businesses work. No business exists to employ people; they exist to make as much money as possible. Hemorrhaging fans, or customers, is the quickest path to failure, so it’s smart for the NFL to do all it can to stop the swirling public relations disaster its players created.

Fining teams whose players kneel during the anthem isn’t “punishing dissent,” it’s the people who sign the front of the players’ sizable checks exerting the authority inherent in any employer/employee relationship.

Players have six other days of the week, and 21 other hours on the day of games, not to mention the months they have off, to protest whatever they want in any matter they choose. They’re celebrities in their towns, they don’t lack access to media willing to report on anything they do. But when they punch the clock, they should leave their personal agendas in the locker room and do their jobs.

President Trump didn’t create the disgust fans felt; he recognized it.