Super Bowl-winning cornerback Richard Sherman (formerly of the Seahawks, now with the 49ers) says Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones suffers from the “old plantation mentality” because Jones is now requiring players to stand during the national anthem’s duration.
Last week, Jerry Jones set off a few SJW fuses when he declared that all players must stand during the national anthem, essentially banning them from using company time for political protest.
“Our policy is you stand during the anthem, toe on the line,” Jones said during a team press conference.
Jones’ move followed the NFL’s decision to freeze their recent policy of requiring players to stand for the national anthem after severe pushback from the NFL Players Association (NFLPA). The NFL and NFLPA are currently working out a compromise; under the new policy, players are allowed to remain in the locker room during the anthem if they do not want to stand.
Speaking with USA Today Sports, Sherman said of Jones: “The owner of the Dallas Cowboys, with the old plantation mentality. What did you expect?”
“They’re having the conversations; that’s awesome,” Sherman continued. “But there are unintended consequences. If they did this [original policy] to appease people, they didn’t appease anyone. It’s like putting a Band-Aid over a broken leg.”
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, however, felt the new policy was appropriate, saying the national anthem was not the time for protest.
“I’d never protest during anthem, and I don’t think that’s the time or the venue to do so,” the QB said, according to NBC Sports. “The game of football has always brought me such a peace, and I think it does the same for a lot of people — a lot of people playing the game, a lot of people watching the game, a lot of people that have any impact of the game. So when you bring such a controversy to the stadium, to the field, to the game, it takes away … from that. It takes away from the joy and the love that football brings a lot of people.”