NY Giants players will not be punished for national anthem kneeling, says Steve Tisch

Art Stapleton | NorthJersey

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Players from the New York Giants will not be fined or suspended by the team if they choose to kneel in protest of social and racial injustice during the national anthem on game day, co-owner Steve Tisch told The Hollywood Reporter earlier this week.

Tisch was also critical of President Trump, whose verbal attacks against the NFL fanned the flames of what has become a hot button issue within the league and sports in general. Giants linebacker Olivier Vernon took a knee last September in a game against the Philadelphia Eagles and did so for the remainder of the season.

Vernon said last month that he had not yet decided what he would do this season.

“We support our players,” Tisch said in the interview Tuesday night at the premiere of The Equalizer 2, of which the former is a producer. “They are not going to be punished. There is not going to be any punitive action taking place against them.”

The NFL and the NFLPA released a joint statement regarding the issue Thursday night, acknowledging that both sides were continuing to meet behind closed doors with the hope to come up with a solution.

That statement read, in part: "The NFL and NFLPA reflect the great values of America, which are repeatedly demonstrated by the many players doing extraordinary work in communities across our country to promote equality, fairness and justice.

"Our shared focus will remain on finding a solution to the anthem issue through mutual, good faith commitments, outside of litigation."

Early last season, the silent protests turned into a rallying cry for Trump, who took aim at the league and criticized the players, saying those who "disrespect the anthem" should be "fired" from the league.

“Hopefully he’ll have much more going on that he’s going have to deal with and should deal with and must deal with than worrying about what NFL players do,” Tisch said of Trump. “He has no understanding of why they take a knee or why they’re protesting. When the new season starts, I hope his priorities are not criticizing the NFL and telling owners what to do and what not to do.”

The NFL rule that was passed by the owners in May did not allow players to sit or take a knee if they are on the field or sidelines during the anthem. The new legislation allowed them to stay in the locker room if they preferred, but teams would be subject to fines if players didn’t stand during the anthem while on the field.

Teams would decide on how to punish players for their respective clubs.

That policy is currently on hold in lieu of further discussion between the NFL and the NFLPA.

Email: stapleton@northjersey.com

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