Heavy Kevi

Typical character smearing with an attempt to delegitimize. Sound familiar? More like, "they are entitled to their beliefs, but those beliefs are not for me, so I will remove myself" But, you know, propogandize at will.

So if it wasn't enough that you can't watch sports without an injection of politics, it is now spreading to cable TV broadcasts. I don't have as much of a problem really with this most recent incarnation given the fact that these folks are not on the clock, though I'm sick of it being ubiquitous, and find it categorically misguided. I am baffled as to why they protest the anthem when they apparently are upset by something else (probably Trumps comments on the NFL- tho not sure how it applies to these folks), but I digress. On to the point of the thread... This evening's live finale of Ink Master showcased a truly amazing electric guitar version of the anthem by guitarist/show host Dave Navarro, and several eliminated tattooers sat or took a knee for it (front row on stage, in the left and right flank of center) Anybody who hasn't heard Navarro's version, it's a real treat. He has done it for NASCAR and Bellator MMA as well, and it is freakin' awesome everytime. If you love America the way I do, it might even make the hairs on your arm stand up. Sorry the pic isn't great, but that's what you get for taking a pic of the tv....

Pretty obvious. That's all they have. They hate monger and fear monger themselves, but portray a false narrative that conservative ideals are inherantly evil and racist. They don't want an educated electorate, they want sheep that only hit the party line because they are afraid that conservatives are going to destroy they're life. That's why they insert racism into everything that happens, regardless if it applies or not. The race cards in that deck are going to start getting ragged from overuse.

I did not see Skip/Shannin, can't stand skip. But you/he seems to have identified the problem. First it was crooked cops, then just "things need to change", and now it's solely **** Trump. Problem with that is that the flag is not the symbol of any of those things, they are merely a part of it. It is increasingly clear none of this is about unity. They are sewing seeds of division on their own, all the while telling Trump his 1st amendment doesn't count, and that somehow he is the only catalyst of division. Trump knows, though he, as usual, was incendiary and ham-handed, that the general public sympathizes with his sentiment, and this is one he can come out of clean. Though you would never know of it watching MM, and as I stated before, over 70% of Americans are against taking out non-related grievances on our country's most sacred symbol of unity. I have several flags tattooed on me, and quite frankly I don't give a dried up pile of donkey **** for the NFL in comparison with my love of America and the American spirit. And I find it a bit ironic that some of the people who have benefitted most from America are smashing it's institution as if it were some wholly rotten republic. There is no doubt the US is flawed, but it is overall a great place and the vast majority of people are truly good folks that don't care who you pray to, where you came from, what color you are, or who you want to have sex with. This is definitely his tactic. Straight out of his book "Art of the Deal", he shoots for the stars, so when you settle on giving up the moon it doesn't seem as bad. That's what he does on literally everything. Dreamers will never be deported, there will never be a wall on the entire border, they will never fully repeal our socialist healthcare disaster, but Trump gets his opposition all in a tizzy, and they will give more in negotiations. Obviously he is being obstructed by the undercover demagogues and the Washington establishment, and that's why it has failed to work so far. As I have often quoted, "If pro is the opposite of con, what is the opposite of progress?" I do understand your statement.... But if you showed up to work and spent on clock hours protesting something that offended 70% of their customers, they would fire you. Without question. Secondly, it is "you're right" to insult elderly people, swear around children, and walk around in your underwear. That doesn't make them appropriate in public discourse. Perhaps these folks should actually protest what they want to protest. They say they "love the flag", and they are not protesting America or the anthem, but then why are they protesting it, instead of the crooked cops, white supremacists, or whatever else they are upset about? If I'm mad a Chuck Schumer, should I then protest McDonald's becausd I saw him eat there one time?

Behavior is "better" because of the mass increase of security and regulations over the past few years. I don't think it's better, but that's another conversation.

Well, honestly, as a 30 year employee he was probably going to retire soon anyway. But leaving this way serves his belief set. Just my opinion on the situation.

Haha... Aside from the talking heads payed to hype up the fans, anyone who knew anything knows Cutler is not a good QB anymore, and has not been in a long time. As a matter of fact, he has only been good when he's had Marshall, because Cutler trusts his arm WAY TOO MUCH, but Marshall in his hayday could come down with anything.

Saw that on the news last night. Shows you how offended some people are. I would never give up my career for some nonsense like this, but hey, he can do whatever he thinks is best for him.

Happens all the time. Chip Kelly, Eric Mangini, BA, Rex, etc, etc, etc...

That's true. But my sentiment is that we ought not put stock in these things. They are more of a "whos hot" meter rather than an actual ranking of how good a team is.

From 26 to 15 in one week. That means a loss in ATL could drop us right back down with these ever-changing power ranking.

True story. Many people would support the protest against crooked cops, kkk, and WN if they didn't hijack something that is dear to their hearts in the process. WaPo was right, this is bad for everyone involved. Is just plain, unfettered attention really helping their cause? I would argue no since it has been so diluted now people don't even know what they are protesting.

I don't think the protest will have a "long term effect" by themselves, but my point is it is another on a long list of things the NFL has done to alienate fans. Some fans will never come back, and many people aren't driven by the media. The NFL is a deteriorating brand, that is the truth. You can attibute it to many things, but the protest is one of those factors.

Adam Gase should have thought about that before he signed Smokin' Jay Turnover.

It's over 70% of Americans. Thats why protesters are being heavily booed. And Villanueva has the highest selling jersey right now. Just sayin' Well put. If anything, the protests are many viewers "last straw". I didn't get as much publicity, but Trump also complained about what many others complain about.... flags, refs, taking hitting out of the game, etc.... Let's also recognize NFLs "selective" free speech. No to breast cancer awareness, no to 9/11 remembrance, no to supporting slain police, but this is ok. If they were consistent this would not be as big an issue either.

Might help him get his head right if he realizes that he is not irreplaceable. Watching the defense succeed without him might knock him down a peg. Wish I could see him try, or give a damn at all about his job, fans that pay him, or even just his contractual obligations. He is a rich man because he said he would follow the rules and play. He lied.

He's saying they will win by 25... Personally, I feel like our def will slow them down but not shut them down. To me it's more of a story of our Offense vs their Defense. If we score 28 points, we win the game. I wouldn't even begin to try to predict the outcome, though. Generally, these are the types of games we can steal, and there's one every year, but the matchups are so wacky it's hard to tell.

Makes sense. But fans will cling to our most recent success, and unfortunately for us, our most recent success was a generation ago.

Murph wishes. Always tacky when you take a huge moment like "May-day", and apply it to a week 3 non-rivalry game.

Oh yes, the "he criticized our beliefs and that was wrong, so let me criticize his beliefs" argument. But the statement that he hid that sentiment behind has merit. I have wondered for a while what JK is doing on the sideline, or Ray Lewis in Baltimore, Jim Brown in Cleveland, etc....

Kind of hard for you to take the moral high ground when you start out with "simpleton country bumpkin"...

Because a guy can throw does not mean I care what he thinks. Because a guy can run does not meam I care what he thinks. This is a big fat ball of I don't care. I generally have an opinion here, but am just so over this whole politcs/sports merger that I just threw up a little in my mouth thinking about it.

To be honest, they will probably do the same thing to us. Our def looks good, but I don't know if there is an NFL team that can shutdown Ryan/Julio et al, and I'm not sure we have the firepower to match point for point. But we can hope.

I've complained plenty about Millennials, but this isn't an age issue, it's a "stupid" issue. Seen it happen too many times.

Yeah, I don't even know why, but the air just seemed to say "FAKE"