The Dallas Cowboys have not made a final decision in regards to social justice protests during the national anthem.
Owner Jerry Jones has prohibited his players from doing so in the past.
But he has asked for grace as he develops a policy in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and the movement to denounce racism and police brutality against Black people.
There will almost certainly be a renewed push for player protests this season, similar to what has happened in other sports such as the NBA, WNBA and MLB.
Many players have said they want to do something as a team.
Cowboys nose tackle Dontari Poe, however, has already made up his mind.
He said he planned to kneel during an interview in July. And he has not wavered, even though he has yet to have a personal conversation with Jones about the issue.
No Cowboys player has ever kneeled during the anthem. Poe would be the first.
" ... We had a team meeting where he kind of expressed a couple of feelings and he always told us he had an open door for us to talk to him at any time, so I look forward to taking advantage of that and just getting in his ear and seeing how he's feeling about it," he said of Jones.
Poe called out Jones last month for his silence on racism and the anthem..
"His silence definitely means a lot because in any other situation (he) will have something to say about most things," Poe said to Bleacher Report. "I was once a proponent of doing stuff behind closed doors, and doing what I need to do not out in the forefront. ... Personally, I would hope that he comes out and says, 'OK, I am willing to help, I am willing to fight, and I am willing to be with y'all.'"
" ... I hope he comes out and shows his support. ... You are an owner of an NFL team _ you get what I'm saying? The majority of this team are these people that are being oppressed. So even if you are not going to be in the forefront, we need to know we have your support in that type of way."
That was before Jones broke his silence Aug. 13 during the Cowboys' State of the Union press conference to kick off training camp. He asked for grace in making his decision, though his feelings on the anthem haven't changed.
"I visited with everybody and shared some of the very same thoughts as well as thoughts with them," Jones said Friday on his radio show. "Then I've done it on a one-way basis, which kind of expressing my thoughts, not a lot of people, not only staff, but also players that haven't, we haven't worked together before. ...
"They don't know me in many cases that well, and, so, I spent past days and weeks just making sure that they know where I'm coming from and I let some others do the talking for me."
Jones said he has had Hall of Famers such as Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith come talk to the team about him and how he has supported his players over the years.
"They can talk to these guys about the way that I am," Jones said. " And, so, we've got each other's back. ... Everybody knows where I stand on the anthem. Everybody knows where the Cowboys stand. But I've got everybody's back around here, too. And we'll work through it as it comes."
Jones, however, has not had a one-on-one conversation with Poe about the issue. The free-agent defensive tackle who signed with the Cowboys in March plans to take the owner up on his offer of an open door policy.
"I just want to get in there and talk to him," Poe said. "I talked to a couple of players about how he is and all of them pretty much told me the same thing, yeah he's willing to talk, he's always ready, he's not too busy. So that was encouraging from that aspect, but like I said there's still words to be had between us two so we'll do that."
Other prominent Cowboys players say they want to do something as a team, including receiver Amari Cooper.
"I think the most important thing is to have that discussion, which I'm sure we will," Cooper said. "Obviously, we're kind of behind the 8-ball in terms of practicing and learning the plays and everything like that. But I know the time will come when we will have that discussion. I think the most important part about whatever our consensus is, is that we do it together."
Others, such as quarterback Dak Prescott, running back Ezekiel Elliott and defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, have expressed similar sentiments.
Poe, who kneeled during the anthem when he was with the Atlanta Falcons in 2017, already has his mind made up, regardless of what the others decide.
"There really wasn't a big topic in my portfolio," Poe said of a group decision. "I was just pretty much saying something, saying I was going to do something that I felt was right for me. Not saying that anybody else is wrong for not doing it or whatever their cause is but I just felt like I just wanted to do it for me and what I want the statement I wanted to make."
