President Trump again slammed the National Football League today for low ratings and blamed a handful of African American players for protesting during the national anthem, as two Miami Dolphins players took to the knee during The Star Spangled Banner.
The NFL’s opening showdown between the Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons on Thursday evening earned only a 13.4 overnight Nielsen rating on NBC, the smallest audience for an NFL regular season opener in the last 10 years.
Wow, NFL first game ratings are way down over an already really bad last year comparison. Viewership declined 13%, the lowest in over a decade. If the players stood proudly for our Flag and Anthem, and it is all shown on broadcast, maybe ratings could come back? Otherwise worse!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 9, 2018
While Trump blamed protesters for the low viewership, the fact is only one Eagles player, Michael Bennett, appeared to protest during Thursday’s game.
Bennett stood for the start of The Star Spangled Banner but then sat on the team bench before the song had finished.
The defensive end, who has protested in the past, did not raise his fist as he has done at previous games. No Falcons player appeared to protest.
Today, after Trump tweeted and reports revealed there would be no NFL policy on player protests this season, Miami Dolphins wide receiver Kenny Stills and wide receiver Albert Wilson took the knee during the national anthem before their game against the Tennessee Titans.
Other players – Marquise Goodwin of the San Francisco 49ers and Robert Quinn of the Miami Dolphins – raised a fist in protest.
Trump has been attacking the league in the ramp-up to opening season as standing for the national anthem is seen as an issue that could rally his conservative base ahead of the November midterm election.
One reason given for Trump’s ongoing hatred of the NFL is the fact he tried to buy the Buffalo Bills for a billion dollars in 2014, and was rejected.