Marshawn Lynch: To stand or not to stand

It was early morning on a Sunday. I opened up my laptop and what is the first thing I see? Marshawn Lynch of the Oakland Raiders “refused” to stand for the National Anthem during a glorified scrimmage.

I did my best not to hit the comment button, but curiosity got the best of me. There in front of me on the screen were complete strangers tossing heated opinions around like deflated footballs.

On the drive to work I thought about the man Marshawn Lynch, not the football player. I asked myself many questions as to why he would do this, with the whole Colin Kaepernick situation still extremely ripe, thanks to media of the social and professional kind.

I’m sure half the audience has never heard of Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. Known previously as Chris Jackson, Abdul-Rauf played for the Denver Nuggets for six seasons. At the end of the 1993 season, he was the NBA’s Most Improved Player. He led the Nuggets in scoring, and led the entire league in free throw percentage.

Kansas City Chiefs

He refused to stand for the anthem over 20 years ago. For months he did this without a single person noticing. At the time we were not told by our politicians or our media that this was a big deal. He continued to do this without reaction until early 1996 when some people called in to the local radio station criticizing him for showing a lack of patriotism. The Oklahoma City bombing was fresh on everyone’s mind.

I remember this as a teenager. I remember a few weeks of banter and headlines, and then I remember never hearing of Abdul-Rauf again. My mindset back then, with a pure, non-politically affiliated heart, found the act of refusing to stand during the anthem similar as to how I felt as a younger child in school concerning the Pledge of Allegiance. I hated standing for the Pledge—such a lazy boy back then. I just found it odd that an adult was too lazy to stand as well.

Long before Twitter and Facebook, the exact same thing happened as it did last year with Colin Kaepernick. Shortly after, Abdul-Rauf made the nightly news for something other than basketball, the Nuggets and Abdul-Rauf came to an agreement, which allowed him to stand during the anthem and pray. The problem began to fix itself, until Abdul-Rauf found himself unable to sign with a NBA team. Clubs didn’t want the attention that came with the signing.

What do Abdul-Rauf and Kaepernick have in common other than refusing to stand for a song? First, they found themselves without a team to play for. Second, they can both be considered decent at what they do. Not great, but decent. Decency when it comes to skill set is not a level where a professional wants to add baggage.

The situation is comparable to Tim Tebow as well, who also found himself without a job because he knelt—not during the anthem, but he knelt. Tebow’s very public Christian beliefs brought baggage. He was also a decent NFL quarterback. Okay, he was at least good enough to hold a clipboard. If Tyler Bray can hold one, so should Tim Tebow.

All three individuals mentioned in the previous paragraphs were decent players—nothing more—and that’s not a knock on their talent. All three brought considerable baggage with them when compared to that talent level. When the media chooses to surround the back-up quarterback instead of the team captain, that’s baggage.

It isn’t worth it to any team out there to deal with this stuff unless the talent level of said individual is top tier. Doesn’t make it right, doesn’t make it wrong; that’s just the clearest way to look at it.

When the media chooses to surround the back-up quarterback instead of the team captain, that’s baggage.

Since when did we care what these guys were doing on the sideline before the first snap? That’s an honest question, folks. We watch football because we love the game of football, right? If it’s anti-American to kneel during the anthem, is it also anti American to beat your wife or use illegal drugs? These things do not stop most of us from tuning in.

I envy all those people who make such a big deal about whether or not a man stands up. I have way too many problems and issues in my own life to worry about someone else’s. Unless of course, this someone is causing physical harm to another person.

It doesn’t matter if I agree or disagree with these guys. My opinion doesn’t matter, and yes, I do have an opinion. What Colin Kaepernick and Marshawn Lynch do does not affect me at all. It doesn’t affect you, the reader, either. Your life didn’t change the moment Kaepernick knelt down. You probably didn’t even know about the situation until after the fact.

So Marshawn sat during the anthem. What now? See, Lynch is not a decent player. He is an All-Pro running back. His baggage doesn’t matter. It’s the business of the sport. Marshawn Lynch is a brand. And he is the CEO. He’s a darn good one too.

Beast Mode is the highest profile player to commit such an act so far. He also has the mindset to battle whatever is coming his way because of this. We must unite not because of our similarities but because of our differences. A wise dwarf once said, “We make peace with our enemies, not our friends.”

This type of thing only matters if we allow it to. There is so much more going on in the world for us to spend our blood pressure on. There should be plenty in our own lives to not have the time to be bothered by celebrity banter. Wrong or right, agree or disagree, we all share this planet.

If the media didn’t report it the craze would have never happened. How many of us have been to a sporting event? Ever notice people not standing for the National Anthem? Of course, always. The difference? Answer that one on your own. I would stand, but that doesn’t mean anything, does it?

Let’s not make these football players political spokesmen. Watch the game. Enjoy the game. There are probably, on average, five people who have committed worse crimes than what Kaepernick has done on every NFL team. Many of those who read this are guilty as well. Myself included.

Enjoy football!