NFL and players union will meet with owners about anthem protests

A day after the NFL said the league would be discussing what to do about national anthem protests at the owners' meetings next week, it sent out another memo saying the players union would be involved in those discussions.

Wednesday, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy tweeted that commissioner Roger Goodell and union head DeMaurice Smith would be there to talk to owners about what the league can do to move forward on players' concerns toward social issues.

The owners will meet Oct. 17-18 at The Conrad in New York.

"Commissioner Roger Goodell reached out to NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith today and both he and player leadership will attend the League meetings next week," the league said in a statement. "There has been no change in the current policy regarding the anthem. The agenda will be a continuation of how to make progress on the important social issues that players have vocalized. Everyone who is part of our NFL community has a tremendous respect for our country, our flag, our anthem and our military, and we are coming together to deal with these issues in a civil and constructive way."

On Tuesday, Goodell sent a memo to teams saying, "We believe that everyone should stand for the National Anthem." 

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Then Wednesday, after President Trump tweeted that it was "about time" Goodell and the NFL demanded all players stand for the anthem, the league sent out a statement, clarifying the commissioner's stance that the league was looking to "move from protest to progress, working to bring people together."

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