The NFL said it has no plans to discipline players over this weekend’s protests, defying President Donald Trump’s declarations that athletes who stayed in the locker room or took a knee during the national anthem should be fired or suspended. “Our players have a right to express themselves,” NFL Executive Vice President Joe Lockhart told reporters Monday.
The NFL would have a tough time punishing the players even if it wanted to. Unlike most private-sector employees, who can be fired at will, NFL players are protected by contracts that circumscribe when disciplinary measures can be imposed.
“Unless you kick somebody out because of union activity, race, sex, religion -- the employer can dismiss you at any time for any reason,” said William Gould IV, who chaired the National Labor Relations Board under Bill Clinton and has taught sports law at Stanford University.