Tennessee Titans QB Marcus Mariota Backs Player Protests

NASHVILLE, TN — The face of the Tennessee Titans franchise has not taken a knee himself, but his heart is with those who do.

Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota said Wednesday that professional athletes should use their visibility to bring attention to issues they care about. In a movement that started with then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, NFL players have been taking a knee during the pre-game playing of the national anthem to protest racial inequality and police brutality.

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“I think it’s an opportunity for them to express their right,” Mariota said Wednesday at the Titans press availability. “When you’re able to do that, when you’re able to bring awareness to some social issues you give people a voice. When it comes down to it, I think we’re at a level, we’re at a point in our careers where we have a platform. If we’re able to use that in the right light, I think it can be something that’s very beneficial.”

Also See: Goodell: 'Everyone Should Stand' For The Anthem

Critics of the protests — including President Donald Trump — have said the protests disrespect the military and the country.

The most vocal player supporting and participating in the protest on the Titans is wide receiver Rishard Matthews, whose father served as a Marine for 21 years and whose half-brother, who served as a Marine for a decade and fought in Operation Iraqi Freedom, died in a plane crash while working as a defense contractor in Afghanistan in October 2015. Matthews wears a bracelet with his brother's name and the Marine Eagle, Globe and Anchor during games. The receiver — coincidentally a college teammate of Kaepernick's at the University of Nevada — has also donated $75,000 to organizations working within "oppressed communities."

Matthews said protest critics, including the president, are using the military as a "distraction" in the debate and said he would kneel until Trump apologizes for demonizing players. Matthews, however, has simply remained in the tunnel for the anthem for three straight games dating back to September 24, when the entire Titans and Seattle Seahawks teams remained off-field, as did a number of other teams.

Asked by a local television producer on Twitter last week what he thought of a rumor that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell would require players to stand for them, Matthews said, in a now-deleted tweet, that he'd quit football. He later walked that statement back and apologized for it.

Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota hands a souvenir to a fan after an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts Monday, Oct. 16, 2017, in Nashville, Tenn. The Titans won 36-22. (AP Photo/James Kenney)