'Players are the Boss!': Trump taunts NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell AGAIN in Twitter rant after Giants player Olivier Vernon takes the knee for the National Anthem on Thanksgiving
- Giants star Olivier Vernon kneeled for the National Anthem on Thanksgiving
- In a 6am Twitter rant, Trump retweeted a post which criticized the player
- He wrote: 'Can you believe the disrespect for our Country, our Flag'
- President also blasted the Commissioner for 'losing control of the league'
Donald Trump has again taunted the NFL Commissioner for 'losing control' of the players after New York Giants star Olivier Vernon took a knee for the National Anthem on Thanksgiving.
He wrote in a 6am Twitter rant: 'Can you believe that the disrespect for our Country, our Flag, our Anthem continues without penalty to the players.
'The Commissioner has lost control of the hemorrhaging league. Players are the boss!'
President Donald Trump said Wednesday morning on Twitter that the NFL shouldn't enact a policy requiring players to remain in their locker rooms while the National Anthem is played
Defensive end Vernon, 27, came under heavy fire from fans for his protest on Thanksgiving
Olivier Vernon #54 of the New York Giants kneels during the national anthem prior to their NFL game against the San Francisco 49ers
Commissioner of the National Football League Roger Goodell (pictured) was taunted by Trump again
Trump was replying to a tweet by his assistant Dan Scavino which linked to a Breitbart article criticizing Vernon for taking a knee before playing the San Francisco 49ers.
Defensive end Vernon, 27, came under heavy fire from fans for his protest.
One wrote: 'On #Thanksgiving dude? While the Anthem is sung by a Master Sergeant of the United States Army to honor the United States of America ? Disgusting and despicable. Turning off the game #NFL'
Trump has previously demanded that NFL players who kneel during the anthem to protest the treatment of African-Americans should be fired or suspended.
His latest attack on commissioner Roger Goodell comes after a similar Twitter rant on Wednesday.
Trump wrote: 'The NFL is now thinking about a new idea – keeping teams in the Locker Room during the National Anthem next season. That’s almost as bad as kneeling!' the president wrote.
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'When will the highly paid Commissioner finally get tough and smart? This issue is killing your league!'
Trump was referring to a Washington Post report on Tuesday that outlined a possible new league policy being privately debated by NFL team owners.
Various players and teams have stayed in their locker rooms before games this year, emerging only after the National Anthem is played in order to avoid the decision of whether or not to stand.
Most recently, Trump slammed Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch for continuing to sit for The Star Spangled Banner, despite standing for the Mexican anthem before a game on Sunday.
Lynch's latest protest took place on Sunday before the Raiders played the New England Patriots at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City.
Only a handful of National Football League players, including these three Miami Dolphins, took a knee during The Star Spangled Banner on Sunday, but Trump is not letting go of the issue
Wednesday's rant: 'When will the highly paid Commissioner finally get tough and smart?' the president wrote in a jab at Roger Goodell; 'This issue is killing your league!'
During Week 11 in the league's season, only a handful of players continued the protests – which Trump and other critics say has led to diminished game attendance and television audiences.
In an early morning tweet on Monday, Trump said the NFL should suspend him for the 'remainder of season.'
'Marshawn Lynch of the NFL's Oakland Raiders stands for the Mexican Anthem and sits down to boos for our National Anthem,' Trump wrote. 'Great disrespect!'
'Next time NFL should suspend him for remainder of season. Attendance and ratings way down.'
Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch remained seated for the U.S. anthem this weekend before standing for the Mexican anthem, and it didn't escape Trump's notice
In addition to Lynch, the only players who took a knee were New York Giants defensive end Olivier Vernon; and Miami Dolphins wide receiver Kenny Stills, safety Michael Thomas and tight end Julius Thomas.
Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters remained in the tunnel leading from the field to the locker rooms until the National Anthem concluded, and then joined his team on the field.
Peters had chosen to kneel during the anthem in previous games this season.
In addition to pointing out that the anthem was being sung by a master sergeant, Scavino 's tweet referred to the NFL’s highly-publicized ratings decline, which both he and the President attribute to the controversial protests.
‘While @NFL ratings continue to plummet,’ Scavino wrote. ‘Not So Thankful: @Giants @OlivierVernon54 Kneels During the National Anthem on Thanksgiving Day (while a Master Sergeant of the United States Army sings) at FedEx Field...’
Whether or not NFL ratings are actually down because of the players’ peaceful demonstrations is a matter of debate.
Viewership was down about 5 percent over the first seven weeks of the NFL season, according to CNN. However, that decline is part of an overall downtick in ratings.
Fox's primetime viewership was down 20 percent through the first month of the new television season, according to Nielsen data, while ABC (11 percent), CBS (6 percent), and NBC (four percent) have all seen a decline as well.
The NFL's ratings have even recovered somewhat in recent weeks, as Seattle and Atlanta's recent 'Monday Night Football' game drew a 7.2 in metered markets for ESPN, according to Deadline.com. That was a 16 percent rise over the Miami-Carolina MNF game a week earlier.
Donald Trump has again taunted the NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell (pictured)
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