evidence: A total of 204 players protested during the anthem on Sunday out of the 1,696 players on National Football League active rosters, compared with six players the previous week, according to a team-by-team breakdown by the Associated Press. [...] "We're not going to play politics. We're football players. We're football coaches. We're not participating in the anthem today. Not to be disrespectful to the anthem, but to remove ourselves from this circumstance. People shouldn't have to choose. If a guy wants to go about his normal business and participate in the anthem, he shouldn't be forced to choose sides. If a guy feels the need to do something, he shouldn't be separated from his teammate who chooses not to. So we're not participating today. That's our decision. We're going to be 100 percent. We came here to play a football game." — Steelers coach [...] About 12 players, including Saints running back Adrian Peterson, protested during the national anthem.