Cowboys' Jerry Jones Says He's 'Sensitive' to Players, Fans About Kneeling

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones discussed the difficulties of being "sensitive" to players' concerns amid the Black Lives Matter movement and the potential backlash from some fans if members of the organization kneel during the national anthem throughout the 2020 NFL season.

Jones talked about how the situation is a balancing act during an appearance Tuesday on 105.3 The Fan Radio in Dallas:

"That is a huge issue. Huge. You know by just the nature of the way that I run the team how much I appreciate the interest that's in the Dallas Cowboys. Now I know there's interest just because they want to see us get beat, but still the big interest is there. I'm very sensitive to that. That's exactly why I've said that I want our players to be very sensitive to just how important it is to the majority of our fans, more than any other team, the majority of our fans how sensitive they are recognizing what this great country is and what this flag stands for.

"Everybody knows where I stand. And there's no equivocation there at all. I feel fortunate to be a part of an entity, the Dallas Cowboys, and a sport that has that much interest. Consequently, I want everybody to understand that if any player that is standing out there has a serious, serious, serious awareness of the kind of sensitivity there is there and they ask for help. It's not good to be obstreperous or anything if you're asking people to see it through your eyes and see it in your way. It's important to show the kind of grace. It's all about trying hard to move the ball forward to see where the other guy is coming from. Not necessarily to agree, but to see where he is coming from. I hope the Dallas Cowboys can be part of that just because that's of interest in what we're talking about this morning."

In August, Cowboys defensive tackle Dontari Poe said he was planning to take part in silent protest during the national anthem this season.

"Yeah, I do still plan on kneeling, but we haven't had the conversation yet," Poe told reporters. "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 the statement I wanted to make."

Jones was asked about Poe's plans a couple of days later.

"We will have to recognize what he's trying to do and the way he's trying to do it," he said. "And everyone is going to be sensitive to what it is we are about. Out there to ask the fans to follow us, to be attentive to us, and we are well aware of the issue and well aware of where Dallas Cowboys fans are on it."

Jones was previously criticized for saying he'd seek a compromise with players similar to one made before a game against the Arizona Cardinals in September 2017, when he joined the team on the field to kneel before the anthem and then they all stood for the song. Jones reflected on the moment:

"And that, at the end of the day, was a recognition that we support our players. I knelt with our players as you know, on a personal basis, but as a team, we all knelt together before the anthem, and we stood for the anthem to recognize what its symbol is to America. And I thought that was good. That's the kind of thing that we'll be looking to see if we can implement."

No Cowboys player has knelt for the anthem since former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick started the protest movement in 2016.

Dallas is scheduled to open the regular season Sunday when it travels to SoFi Stadium to face the Los Angeles Rams.

The protests will be a major Week 1 storyline, and the Cowboys players will be in the spotlight given Jones' lack of a definitive stance on the topic.