When Cowboys owner Jerry Jones first met the media in months, the magic word was “grace”. Now that could be a “compromise”.
Via Clarence E. Hill, Jr. from the Star of Fort Worth Telegram, Jones said during an appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas that he hoping to find common ground when it comes to potential protests during the national anthem.
One possibility would be to kneel in front of the anthem and stand during it, like the Cowboys did for their first game after the president. son of a bitch the attack on the kneeling players during the anthem sparked protests throughout the league.
Jones also said he plans to discuss the issue with defensive tackle Dontari Poe, who has vowed to kneel down.
Jones’ comments on Tuesday come four days after he said this on 105.3 The Fan: “Everyone knows where I stand on the anthem. Everyone knows where the Cowboys are. But I also have everyone here. And we will work on it as we go.
Perhaps the time has come, frankly, for the commissioner to speak to Jones. At a time when the commissioner has tried to make it clear that he supports players who are protesting, that support makes no sense unless individual team owners feel the same way. Roger Goodell should tell Jerry Jones, in plain and simple terms, that there must be full support for the players when it comes to any decision they make, and that there should be no effort to dissuade them.
Without that kind of guidance / mandate from the league office, Jones will undoubtedly try to get some nice talk and / or show some strength to get players to stand up for the anthem. Given that Jones plans to host fans for every home game in 2020 (Texas currently allows up to 50% capacity for sporting events), Jones won’t want to set the stage for fans booing and / or boycott in case of knees.
Frankly, what Jones wants shouldn’t matter. The league should set the policy. And if the commissioner doesn’t tell the teams what can’t and what can’t be said or done regarding the national anthem, what’s the point of even asking the commissioner to say whether or not he supports the protests? players?
