CHARLOTTE, NC — New Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper defended NFL players who chose to kneel in protest before games, saying their actions off the field supporting their communities should speak louder, according to a new report.
“These are some of the most patriotic people and best people,” Tepper said in an interview with CNBC’s Scott Wapner. “These are great young men,” he said “So to say that [they aren’t patriotic] makes me so aggravated and angry. It’s just wrong, it’s dead wrong.”
Tepper’s defense of players who have knelt or sat during pregame singing of the national anthem in order to draw attention to police brutality and shooting of unarmed African Americans in the U.S. comes at the start of his first season as owner of the Charlotte-based NFL team, and months after the league passed a rule against it.
SEE ALSO: New NFL Policy: Players On Field Must Stand For National Anthem
NFL players on the sidelines before the game now have to stand for the national anthem, according to a new league policy announced in late May. The policy does not require players stay on the field during the anthem and those who want to kneel “may stay in the locker room or in a similar location off the field until after the Anthem has been performed,” the policy states.
The owners of the teams agreed on the policy after the issue gained national media attention last season, especially after President Donald Trump weighed in on the matter at a campaign rally for an Alabama senatorial candidate a year ago. However, the league has walked back enforcement this season amid ongoing discussions with players’ unions.
According to Tepper, the protests are about “justice for all,” he told CNBC, adding that he thinks critics should instead focus on the positive things NFL players are doing for their communities.
You can read more about Tepper’s interview with CNBC here.
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Patch Staff Writer Feroze Dhanoa contributed.
Photo: Albert Wilson #15 of the Miami Dolphins kneels during the anthem before their game against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on August 17, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)