"I might kneel during the coin toss because I do support Black Lives Matter. I do support the movement to help correct the policing."
Tuesday 28 July 2020 13:36, UK
Washington head coach Ron Rivera says he will stand for the national anthem this season but is considering taking a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement during the coin toss.
The NFL has been in talks with individual players and their union about how they can honour victims of systemic racism and police violence.
Since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis sparked global protests through the Black Lives Matter movement, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has stated the league was wrong for not listening to players' concerns over social injustice and racism.
Athletes in the USA and around the world have been taking a knee in a show of support to the Black Lives Matter movement.
US President Donald Trump has been heavily critical of athletes choosing to kneel during the US national anthem, describing it as "a sign of great disrespect for our country and our flag".
Rivera told the Athletic: "I'm not going to kneel because my father served in the military. My brother was a first responder. My wife's family was in the military. My dad had brothers that served in World War two.
"So to me, standing at attention is what I'm going to do. That's how I'm going to honour them.
"I might kneel during the coin toss because I do support Black Lives Matter. I do support the movement to help correct the policing.
"But at the same time, I think everybody has to celebrate what the Constitution of the United States entitles us to do as Americans. That's the thing that everybody's got to understand.
"We got to get past all this other stuff and quit making this a political fight. There's nothing political about the Constitution. It's clear cut the Supreme Court rules on it, follow it, and then we're supposed to defend it."
