Before anthem here at Meadowlands. Mix of cheers and boos for this:
For the second-straight week, members of the New York Jets locked arms during the national anthem at MetLife Stadium. In a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, some Jets players appeared to kneel in the end zone minutes before the anthem’s performance, and they were greeted by pockets of both boos and cheers by some fans in the stands.
Once the anthem started, Jets owner Christopher Johnson took part in the demonstration once again, locking arms with two of his players during the song. Some of the players who knelt before the anthem appeared to be directed at a line of standing U.S. Military members, and fans at MetLife voiced their opinions of the demonstraton.
Afterward, the entire team stood and locked arms as Heather Hill sang the national anthem.
The Jaguars, on the other hand, also took a knee as a team before the anthem. Earlier in the week, the team released a statement saying “every one of us” would kneel in an effort to “pray for change, progress and equality for everyone who calls the United States their home.”
Watch a video of the national anthem performance below:
President Donald Trump ignited the war of words with the NFL on September 22, calling players who don’t stand for the national anthem a “son of a b-tch.” Last Sunday, Trump again called for NFL owners to fire or suspend players who don’t stand for the anthem. However, multiple owners have since defended their players’ right to protest, and the hashtag #takeaknee trended on Twitter.
Numerous players on teams across the league have taken aim against Trump and his beliefs by kneeling during the anthem. On Thursday, members of the Green Bay Packers encouraged fans in the stands at Lambeau Field to join them in linking arms during the anthem.
Rodgers and his teammates called on the 80,000-plus fans inside Lambeau to join them in linking arms during the national anthem in a show of unity. When the moment came prior to Thursday’s game, fans chanted, “U.S.A.” before the song was played and pockets of them around the stadium linked arms during the performance by country music star Tyler Farr.