Bob McNair can apologize all he wants, but it won’t stop his Houston Texans players from showing how they really feel.
The Texans are planning to protest as a team before Sunday’s road game against the Seattle Seahawks in response to McNair’s controversial comments in a recent meeting among NFL owners, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday morning, citing league sources.
Houston players held a meeting Saturday in Seattle to determine how they would handle McNair’s comments, per Schefter. They discussed kneeling as a team during the national anthem and possible removing the Texans decal from their helmets.
Texans offensive lineman Duane Brown offered clarity later Sunday morning on Houston’s planned protest to ESPN’s Josina Anderson.
McNair, the Texans’ owner since the team’s inception in 2002, was quoted as saying the NFL “can’t have the inmates running the prison,” while discussing NFL player protests at a recent owners’ meeting in New York.
McNair since has apologized and attempted to clarify his comments, but his words reportedly deeply troubled several Texans players. Wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and rookie running back D’Onta Foreman skipped a Friday practice in a decision that was directly related to McNair’s comments, per Schefter.
Player protests during the national anthem have been a major point of contention that even has drawn the ire of President Donald Trump, so it will be interesting to see how Houston’s protest goes over before its 4:05 p.m. ET kickoff at CenturyLink Field.
Thumbnail photo via Isaiah J. Downing/USA TODAY Sports Images
