The NFL players that choose to sit during the National Anthem are protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution from being arrested. I have not heard anyone call for the players that choose to protest the National Anthem to be arrested. However, The First Amendment does not protect the players from the NFL, a corporation.
The NFL players, referees and employees are required to avoid “conduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence in the National Football League.” How does protesting the National Anthem not trigger that clause? If you say something that is deemed offensive this clause can be triggered.
The NFL is known to aggressively enforce their rules. They have fined players who wore items that supported charity. DeAngelo Williams a Pittsburgh Steelers running back was fined $5,787 for brandishing “Find the Cure” on the eye blacks in honor of his mother who died from breast cancer. William Gay a cornerback on the same team was ordered to pay the same amount for wearing purple cleats to raise awareness of domestic violence in honor of his mother, who was shot dead in a domestic violence incident when he was seven years old. The NFL has no problem coming down hard on these players that are backing worthy causes.
The NFL should understand that many of their fans watch the games as an escape from the real world. By allowing politics to be interjected into the games, they are turning off their fans. There are already a half dozen or more channels dedicated to politics on cable.
The fans have many entertainment choices from other sports to movies or even taking a hike in a number local parks. If the NFL continues to allow the games to be turned into political spectacles where players’ actions are upsetting to large portions of their fans, the NFL will become inconsequential. Their fans will find other venues for their entertainment and the players can stand on their heads, but no one will be watching.