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Depending how you look at it . . .
Some might consider Christopher Johnson’s handling of the anthem matter foolish (it could turn off some fans), but maybe on another level it’s smart.
Why?
The players swear by him. He’s very popular in the locker room.
In some places, like Houston, there is bad blood between the owner and some players over this issue.
That isn’t the case in Florham Park. Christopher is very popular with his rank-and-file.
“I’m appreciative (of Christopher Johnson),” said Jermaine Kearse. “I think he kinds of gets it. None of our players kneeled last year. He understands. That fact that he’s taken ownership to support us and be actively involved. I don’t know what other owners are doing with their teams, but he’s been actively involved having multiple meetings. We’re very appreciative of his support. He cares.”
“Our owner supports us and he’s with us,” said Kelvin Beachum. “He supports us as we’re doing the work.”
The locker room loves this guy. That is a good dynamic to have in a football organization.
And he’s working with them behind the scenes. On what I’m not sure. I’m not being flippant, I just don’t know what initiatives Jets players and Johnson are working on behind the scenes. When I find out, I will let you know.
Todd Bowles appreciates Johnson’s support as well.
“It’s always nice to have the owner have your back,” Bowles said on Tuesday. “It’s about the issues for us.”
Nobody asked Bowles what issues he was referring to. Once again, not being flippant, but one of the problems with the coverage of this story is that nobody is asking players for specifics.
Congressman Peter King, who ripped Johnson last week, claims the anthem protest is based on “a movement premised on lies vs. police.”
So King thinks the entire anthem protest initiative is a slap in the face to police.
Johnson said he wants his players to stand during the anthem, but won’t issue team fines at players how protest.
He also voted in favor of the new rule.
Johnson is playing the middle on this one. He voted for the new rule, doesn’t want his players to kneel, but also has their back if they do.
But because the players feel the owner has their back, it’s unlikely they will kneel, and create a fiasco for him.
As for the fans that’re pissed him at him for saying he won’t fine players, this might lead to some lost customers, but remember, the Jets have a lot of PSL owners, and since they paid so much for the seat license, they aren’t as apt to walk away. Most of those people are locked in to their seat commitment. The top bowl of the stadium is non-PSL and the tickets are pretty cheap, so even if some people walk away from those, there will likely be other people stepping in to fill the void, especially if the Jets are winning.
So you could make an argument that Johnson’s positioning on this isn’t as foolish some people think.
Especially if none of his players protest, which likely will be the case, since they like him so much, and he’s working with them behind the scenes (on something). So there might not be any fines to levy anyway.
May 31, 2018
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