An undrafted rookie for the Philadelphia Eagles is joining Colin Kaepernick in protest by sitting down during the National Anthem.
Myke Tavarres told reporters he plans to sit during Star-Spangled Banner this Thursday when Philadelphia hosts the New York Jets. Tykes almost sat last Saturday when the Eagles played the Colts.
“Oh, I thought about it,” Tavarres told ESPN.com. “Believe me, I definitely thought about it. And usually I’m front and center on the line with the rest of the guys, and that’s since pre-K all the way up. Saturday’s game, I stepped back, I was in the background, and it didn’t feel right to me at all, and so I will be taking a stand — or sitting down — for the fourth game.”
“We’ve got an issue in this country in this day and age, and I feel like somebody needs to step up and we all need to step up,” Tavarres continued to ESPN. “We’ve got that right. There’s just a lot going on that people don’t want to talk about, and I feel like us as athletes, we’re looked at as role models.”
UPDATE:
After being advised by his agent, Myke Tavarres will apparently now stand for anthem: https://t.co/GPCx1WJYVo
— Tim McManus (@Tim_McManus) August 29, 2016
Our staff writer Kevin Jones gave his thoughts on where Kaepernick’s protest is headed earlier on Monday.
NJ.com has an expanded version from inside the Eagles’ locker room. The 23-year-old Tavarres went to the University of Incarnate Word and is originally from Oregon.