The Pittsburgh Steelers are taking an unprecedented step toward protesting during the national anthem: The team isn’t participating at all. Head coach Mike Tomlin told CBS Sports that the team will remain in its locker room in Chicago instead of coming onto the field for the anthem. The motivation behind not participating comes from Tomlin’s desire for the team not to get into a political argument.
Tomlin has been largely silent on the topic of protests during the anthem up to this point. In August he spoke to TribLive about the protests. The news comes in the wake of President Donald Trump calling for NFL players to be “fired” if they refuse to stand for the anthem.