Great Op Ed! I have not watched since pre-season and my NFL gear gathers dust in a drawer. Remember the days following 9/11? Football and baseball were strong healing powers for our nation. I remember watching the tributes on the field as tears dropped down my cheeks. The kneeling players do not understand the “optics” their “protests” represent. To us, the average hard working Americans, they appear out of touch with our reality. We do not want politics crammed down our throats with our “entertainment.” No matter how much the players claim otherwise, they ARE entertainment - a chance to come together in like and in dislike for our favorite teams and hated rivals. Sports are the lone entities that draw fans across all borders, all races, all religions - think about it - the Muslim cab driver in New York wearing the same jersey as the soccer Mom in South Carolina, or the elementary school teacher in Ohio! That jersey, that affiliation was an instant UNIFIER!