Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones doubled down Wednesday on insisting that his players stand for the national anthem Cassius Marsh Jersey , declaring that he wouldn’t support anyone who chose to stay in the locker room.

Speaking at his annual news conference to open training camp in California, the outspoken billionaire became the first owner to say publicly that his players would not be allowed to stay off the field during the anthem.

”No,” Jones said when asked if he would support players staying in the locker room. ”Our policy is that you stand at the anthem, toe on the line.”

Last week, the NFL and the players’ union agreed to suspend the rule approved by owners this spring that gave players the option of staying in the locker room while allowing teams to discipline players who took a knee or sat during the anthem.

The decision to begin negotiating on the issue came hours after The Associated Press reported that Miami Dolphins players who protested during the anthem could be suspended for up to four games under team policy.

Last season, Jones was the first owner to declare that he would bench a player for protesting during the anthem. Two of his players – defensive linemen David Irving and Damontre Moore – raised their fists briefly as ”The Star Spangled Banner” ended but weren’t disciplined.

”I obviously wouldn’t dare speak for any of the other owners, much less in general about 31 other owners,” Jones said. ”As far as the Dallas Cowboys are concerned, you know where I stand. Our team knows where I stand on the issue.”

The issue erupted in 2016 when then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began protesting police brutality, social injustice and racial inequality by kneeling during the national anthem. The demonstration spread to other players and teams.

The NFL started requiring players to be on the field for the anthem in 2009, the year it signed a marketing deal with the military. Jones had already owned the Cowboys for 20 years when players moved from the locker room to the field for the anthem.

Jones said he understood the point of view of players who say they aren’t protesting the flag or the military.

”This is a case where we need to in my mind check that and be real clear that it is, the priority is about the flag, and be real clear about that,” Jones said. ”Sometimes it’s best to just be real clear and succinct so that nobody misunderstands. I think that’s our case.”

Executive vice president Stephen Jones said the Cowboys don’t have an anthem issue because his father has made his stance clear from the beginning.

”I do understand when you see the back and forth,” Stephen Jones said. ”But we’ve been consistent and we’ve never moved. Jerry’s never changed his stance once. I think he feels strongly about it.”

The younger Jones didn’t want to speak for the players when asked if Jerry Jones’ strong message is the reason none of his players have defied him.

”I was always brought up when you work for somebody and they’re the boss Denico Autry Jersey , you play by their rules,” Stephen Jones said.

Jones, who drew praise from President Donald Trump when he said last year that he would bench players, said Trump’s continuing involvement in the anthem issue is ”problematic” for the league.

Trump weighed in again after news of the Dolphins’ policy broke, tweeting ”The $40,000,000 Commissioner must now make a stand,” a reference to Roger Goodell.

”His interest in what we’re doing is problematic from my chair and I would say, in general, in the owner’s chairs,” Jerry Jones said. ”And unprecedented if you really think about it. But like the very game itself, that’s the way it is and we’ll deal with it. But, yes, everybody would like for it to go away.”

Unlike other sports organizations, the Cowboys haven’t distanced themselves from Papa John’s after founder and CEO John Schnatter was ousted over a racial slur.

Schnatter was already under fire for suggesting last year that the pizza company’s sluggish sales were a result of the controversy surrounding the anthem.

Jerry Jones Authentic Jared Goff Jersey , who has had a close relationship with Schnatter, said the Cowboys couldn’t cut ties with the company because of an ownership stake in Papa John’s stores. Stephen Jones said the team was linked to 50 stores in the Dallas area.

”I regret that for John,” Jerry Jones said. ”But at the end of the day we’ve got too many people, too many customers, too many people that we just need to do as good as we can do under the circumstances.”

NOTES: DE David Irving was placed on the ”did not report” list after getting clearance from the Cowboys to deal with personal issues. Jerry Jones said he didn’t expect Irving to attend camp for the three weeks the Cowboys are in California. … DT Maliek Collins (foot) was placed on the physically unable to perform list, while S Kavon Frazier and DE Randy Gregory are on the non-football injury list. Gregory was recently reinstated from a yearlong ban for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.

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The Marlins‘ rally in the fifth lasted so long Phillies first baseman Carlos Santana headed for the dugout after the second out, thinking the inning was over.

Instead Miami scored four more runs.

Brian Anderson hit a three-run homer in Miami’s eight-run fifth, sending the Marlins to a 10-5 victory over Philadelphia on Sunday.

Santana took a couple of steps toward the dugout after fielding a grounder and touching first for the second out in the fifth. He might have had a shot at an inning-ending 3-6-3 double play, but Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said he doubted it.

”It was probably a one-out play,” Kapler said. ”Obviously losing track of the outs is something that can’t happen. He’s one of our most locked in and focused players most of the time, so I think he has earned a pass on this one.”

Marlins manager Don Mattingly lost track of the runs in the inning, there were so many.

”We throw the six up there – or it was eight, right?” he said.

Miami totaled eight hits in the fifth against three pitchers. Cameron Maybin homered and singled in the inning, and Justin Bour had two singles, with his second hit driving in the final two runs for an 8-5 lead.

”It was crazy Mike White Jersey ,” Anderson said. ”Cam’s bomb got us going. It seemed like we were getting our pitches and hitting them, and nobody was missing anything, and if they did miss, it kept dropping.”

The Marlins began the day with the worst record in the NL East, but they took the series against the division-leading Phils and have gone 21-18 since June 5.

”Guys are playing with confidence,” All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto said. ”The hitters, especially the young guys, are starting to gain a lot of confidence and get a lot better.”

The Phillies (53-42) head into the break with an ugly loss, but still lead Atlanta by a half-game in the NL East.

”I’m going to take away all the positive things we did in the first half,” Kapler said. ”We’ve had a really, really spectacular first half.”

Cesar Hernandez hit a bases-loaded triple during a five-run fourth for Philadelphia. Miami’s rally began with Maybin’s one-out solo homer against Enyel De Los Santos.

Following consecutive singles, Anderson also homered. Miguel Rojas hit a two-out, two-run single off Edubray Ramos (3-1) to put the Marlins ahead 6-5. Bour drove in two more runs against Adam Morgan.

It was the most runs scored by the Marlins and allowed by the Phillies in an inning this season.

Ramos thought he struck out Martin Prado to end the fifth with Philadelphia still leading, 5-4. But Prado ended up with a walk.

”It changed the inning completely,” Ramos said. ”I thought we were going to be out of the inning with the called strike Cameron Meredith Jersey , but the umpire called it a ball and everything changed.”

PITCHING LINES

De Los Santos, making his second big league start, was charged with five runs in 4 1/3 innings. The right-hander was recalled before the game from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to start for Zach Eflin, who went on the disabled list with a finger blister.

Ramos was charged with three runs, and his ERA rose from 1.11 to 1.93.

Miami starter Jose Urena allowed five runs and departed after throwing 42 pitches to get through the fourth, matching his shortest outing this year. He came into the game with the worst run support of any NL starter, but for a change his teammates came to the rescue.

Four Miami relievers combined for five hitless innings. Elieser Hernandez (2-5) threw a scoreless fifth.

”Everybody got the right outs,” Mattingly said.

REVERSALS

After initially being ruled out, Realmuto reached in the third inning on an infield hit thanks to a replay reversal. Before the next pitch, De Los Santos picked him off .

UP NEXT

Phillies: On Monday, Rhys Hoskins will become the first Phillies player to compete in the Home Run Derby since Ryan Howard in 2009. Philadelphia comes out of the All-Star break Friday at home against San Diego.

Marlins: RHP Dan Straily (3-4, 4.29 ERA) is scheduled to start when Miami returns from the break Friday at Tampa Bay.

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