The Kneel Down

Anger consumed me.  Now I am calm. After seeing how much this protest has turned into debates over anthems  and a song  and a flag rather than the truth Let's strip away this narrative for good. So ... I don't want to talk about the anthem and whether you should stand, sit or kneel. I don't want to talk about the "star spangled banner" or its racist third verse. I don't want to talk about the military and their differing views on this. I don't want to talk about firefighters. I don't want to talk about EMTs or first responders. I don't want to talk about police. Scratch that. I definitely want to talk about police. I don't want to talk about the TV-host-turned-President and his comments last Friday. I don't want talk about Ray Lewis. In fact I don't ever want to talk about Ray Lewis again. I don't want to talk about unity. I don't want to talk about togetherness. I don

I am angry. I try not to write when I'm angry, even though I'm always in a bit of a state of rage . But in my calmer days is when I generally would rather write. But last Friday night, when the nation's current Commander in Chief continued his trek off the rails on the crazy train, I was quietly incensed. I haven't been able to get Donald Trump's comments from his pep rally at Alabama  out of my mind. As you've heard by now, Trump went on about how NFL owners should "get that son of a bitch off the field right now" when "somebody disrespects our flag." It set the tone for an angry weekend. NFL players became madder than hell , as Trump re-invigorated a player movement that was essentially on life support . By Sunday, NFL viewers (and people like me who chose to only watch the anthem segments on Twitter) were catching glimpses of mass protests from hundreds of players from nearly every team in the league. There's a reason I emphasiz

Week 1 of the NFL season is in the books. As of this morning, so too, are the ratings . Despite a reported six percent spike from last season's Sunday Night Football game from the 18-49 age demographic, the New York Giants-Dallas Cowboys game dropped 6.3 percent — from 23.1 to 21.65 million — according to the New York Post. It's important to note, by the way, last year's SNF game was between New England and Arizona. I'm not an expert, but those appear to be significantly smaller markets than New York and Dallas. It's also important to note, however, that the 6.3 percent drop is significantly less than the 16 percent decline from the 2015 SNF season debut. Take a wild guess: which teams played in that 2015 matchup? If you answered Giants-Cowboys, you either looked it up (cheater), or have a very good memory. Last Thursday, the NFL premiered to an 11.5 percent reduction  in the ratings compared to 2016 and was the lowest NFL opener since 2009 . So what doe

During the two weeks I've been away from the blog since my first post, a lot has happened regarding the topic of the NFL, Colin Kaepernick and the boycott. A huge crowd swarmed NFL headquarters in New York City in support of Kaep organized by multiple civil rights groups. Michael Bennett sat during the national anthem and said he would do so for the entire NFL season . Thirteen days later, the Seattle defensive star said he was subject to police brutality in Las Vegas after attending the Conor McGregor-Floyd Mayweather August 26. A group of 10 Cleveland Browns players knelt during the anthem in a preseason game and the Cleveland police union is all salty about it. Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers told ESPN The Magazine's Mina Kimes that Colin Kaepernick "should be on a roster right now" and "I think because of his protests, he's not." Cam Newton said it's unfair Kaepernick isn't on a roster and is "better than some o

Tonight, September 7, marks the start of the 2017 NFL season. Millions will tune in.  Many others , including  myself , will not. It's been more than two weeks since my first post on this blog, which I do plan to post on at least occasionally for the foreseeable future, and so much has happened since . A couple of friends and family have reached out and all, both in support of me simply writing again and also supporting boycott of the NFL which officially starts today . Those two things are separate, as just as many who support me picking up the proverbial pen again are absolutely against the boycott. I'm not here to villainize them for their opinions or for the mere fact that they plan to watch tonight and every game they can this season. But a particular friend mentioned something that I think bears repeating and is the topic of this post: "Why are you boycotting the NFL?" "I've asked this question to lots of people who have asked me about why

I don't want to do this. That's what I told my high school freshman football coach in my first and only year playing football at any level. I was getting beat up in practice and didn't have a clue what I was actually supposed to do as a third string "nose" tackle. And I was doing all this at a school not exactly known for its football program, so there was literally no fame or glory for getting bruised and abused each practice. I was going to quit the team. Quit football. However, a swift kick in the keister from my mom provided enough, uh, encouragement for me not to give up on a sport I dedicated so much time and effort to. I lost weight, gained social skills, and genuinely began to love the game. I loved it even more once I stepped off the field and watched and learned with each passing day. I haven't stopped loving football, and more succinctly the NFL, since I was introduced to it in 1999. Until today. I'll try no