A day after President Trump called for NFL players who protest the national anthem to be "fired," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell released a statement calling Trump's comments "divisive."
"The NFL and our players are at our best when we help create a sense of unity in our country and our culture. There is no better example than the amazing response from our clubs and players to the terrible natural disasters we've experienced over the last month," Goodell's statement read.
"Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities."
It didn't take long for Trump to fire back at Goodell in a tweet:
Roger Goodell of NFL just put out a statement trying to justify the total disrespect certain players show to our country.Tell them to stand!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 23, 2017
But earlier on Saturday, Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said he and Goodell are on the same page regarding Trump's comments.
“I thought the commissioner had a great statement, and I agree with it,” Arians said, according to Kyle Odegard at AZCardinals.com. “I’ve been in locker rooms for 25 years, and some of the most reputable men I’ve ever met wear that uniform.
"To even overcome the things in their life to get to the NFL is amazing. What they’ve done in the last month for hurricane relief victims speaks volumes of what we’re all about in the NFL.”
Cardinals defensive lineman Frostee Rucker also weighed in on Trump's comments and Goodell's response.
“We can’t let one single person, even though it’s the president, dictate how we feel," Rucker told AZCardinals.com. "We stick together. We’re in a union. If someone takes a knee, it’s almost like we all take a knee, in a sort. He said what he said. We’re going to stick together and be a team.”
Rucker said Cardinals players haven't ruled out protesting the national anthem before Monday night's game vs. the Cowboys in Glendale, although no Cardinal has done so to date. If a protest occurs, "it’s going to be unified," Rucker said.
Later on Saturday, in an apparent reference to Trump, Cardinals offensive lineman D.J. Humphries tweeted that he has never seen anyone cause as much division in his lifetime.
I've been on GOD's green earth for 23 years now and I have never seen one person be able to cause so much division in my lifetime.
— D.J. Humphries (@74_hump) September 23, 2017
Also on Saturday, Cardinals linebacker Deone Bucannon retweeted this tweet from ESPN anchor Jemele Hill, who referred to Trump as a "white supremacist" on Twitter on Sept. 11.
You can't be uninvited to something you weren't going to anyway pic.twitter.com/oZVmDn5ClH
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 23, 2017
