In the past few months, it hasn't been shocking to see the NFL struggle to put the national anthem protest story behind it, despite the league running with a message that says it wants to "get back to football."
The league has done just the opposite with the installation of its new pre-game policy that opens the door for teams to punish players for not adhering its new rules, that all team personnel must "stand and respect the flag" when on the field before the game. This is also an NFL that has cycled through a wave of public-relations executives in recent months and which has empowered some individual owners to steer policy on the matter.