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Every NFL player who has said they'll kneel during the national anthem

The protest movement Colin Kaepernick started in 2016 is expected to be more prevalent than ever at professional and college sports games across the country, in the wake of worldwide protests against racial injustice and police brutality. Drew Brees’ recent criticism of national anthem protests sparked outrage on social media, and led many star NFL players to announce they plan to protest later this year when the season begins.

As of now, the NFL officially prohibits player protests during the national anthem. In response to Kaepernick, the NFL changed its anthem policy in 2018 to require that “all team and league personnel on the field shall stand and show respect for the flag and the anthem.” The policy states that a team will be fined if any of its personnel are not standing for the anthem. If that policy remains unchanged, we could be seeing a lot of fines this fall.

Here’s a running list of all of the NFL players who have stated that they plan to take a knee during the anthem this season.

Redskins RB Adrian Peterson

Peterson told the Houston Chronicle that he will “without a doubt” kneel during the anthem, and indicated that his teammates will as well. “We’re all getting ready to take a knee together going into this season.”

Saints RB Alvin Kamara

Browns QB Baker Mayfield

Mayfield responded to a fan on Instagram over the weekend that he “absolutely” will kneel for the anthem, and later elaborated in a post.

“I have the utmost respect for our military, cops, and people that serve OUR country. It’s about equality and everybody being treated the same because we are all human. It’s been ignored for too long and that it my fault as well for not becoming more educated and staying silent. If I lose fans, that’s OK. I’ve always spoken my mind. And that’s from the heart.”

Cardinals QB Kyler Murray

Cardinals RB Kenyan Drake

In an interview on Good Morning Football, Drake said he will be kneeling alongside Murray.

“Kyler obviously is the undisputed leader of not only the offense, but the whole team. To come out and be able to do that, obviously I respect him and I’ll be right next him doing the same thing.”

Bears DB Jordan Lucas

Lucas told the Chicago Tribune “110% I plan to kneel.”

Texans coach Bill O’Brien

O’Brien says he plans to protest in solidarity with his players.

Via the Houston Chronicle:

“Yeah, I’ll take a knee — I’m all for it,” O’Brien said. “The players have a right to protest, a right to be heard and a right to be who they are. They’re not taking a knee because they’re against our flag. They’re taking a knee because they haven’t been treated equally in this country for over 400 years.”

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