Just hours after the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the New England Patriots in this weekend’s Super Bowl matchup, questions began to swirl surrounding President Trump’s potential invitation to the White House and which Eagles would boycott the traditional event.
According to Fox News, at least three Super Bowl champions -Malcom Jenkins, Chris Long, and Torrey Smith- have already announced their decision to stay home should the President invite the World Champions for a special visit to the nation’s capital.
“My message has been clear all year … I want to see changes in our criminal justice system,” said Jenkins. “I want to see us push for economical and educational advancement in communities of color and low-income communities. And I want to see our relationship between our communities and our law enforcement be advanced.”
“We’re very informed about what goes on, and we’re trying to continue to educate ourselves,” said Smith. “It’s pretty special to have a group like that of folks that aren’t just socially conscious, but folks who genuinely care about people and care about learning more.”
Last year, several New England Patriots refused to visit the White House in protest of the President’s inauguration. It remains unclear whether the Commander-in-Chief plans to extend the invitation following months of player protests and his public feud with the troubled league.
SUPER BOWL SHOCKER: NFL’s Big Game DROPS to EIGHT-YEAR- LOW
The National Football League’s disastrous 2017 season concluded Sunday night; with television ratings dropping to an eight-year low after months of player protests took its toll on furious fans across the country.
According to Deadline Hollywood, the national anger over professional athletes “taking a knee” during the performance of the ‘Star-Spangled Banner’ continued into this weekend’s highly anticipated match-up between the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles; two highly competitive US sports markets.
“Sunday’s Super Bowl LII also saw a decline of 5% in metered market results from the last time NBC had the big game back on February 1, 2015 when the Patriots faced off against then champs the Seattle Seahawks. Overall, last night’s game peaked in the high stakes fourth quarter with 52.2/74,” writes Deadline.
“All in all, Super Bowl LII is currently the lowest rated since Super Bowl XLIV in 2010 when the New Orleans Saints thrashed the Indianapolis Colts on CBS,” the site adds.
The NFL’s 2017 season was marred with scandals and controversies after protesting players routinely kneeled during the US national anthem. The President weighed-in on the issue last year, calling for a national boycott until officials banned political demonstrations on the field.
SUPER BOWL SHOCKER: Over 16% of NFL Fans PLAN Big Game BOYCOTT
The NFL’s Super Bowl is just days away and it’s already shaping up to be a total disaster; with a new shock poll finding 16% of self-described football fans plan to change-the-channel instead of watching the big game this weekend.
A new poll released by Seton Hall University finds that 16% of fans who follow the National Football League “very closely” will not watch this season’s Super Bowl match-up between the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles.
“The poll did not ask those who say they won’t watch what their reasons are, but the political controversy that overshadowed this football season is almost surely a contributing factor,” writes Yahoo! News.
“The poll did ask people if they approved, disapproved or had no opinion about NFL players who protested during the playing of the National Anthem throughout the season. 46% of people said they disapproved of the protests,” the site adds.
The surprising poll is raising alarm bells throughout the NFL as owners and officials struggle to regain furious fans after a disastrous 2017 season. Television viewership reached record lows throughout the year after months of protesting players and political controversies.
Industry experts say professional athletes “taking a knee” during the national anthem has cost the league upwards of $500 million.