NFL players and other pro athetes responded Saturday to President Donald Trump's incendiary comments during an Alabama rally on Friday, when Trump condemned NFL players for kneeling during "The Star Spangled Banner" before games.
Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy called Trump a profanity on Twitter:
Following Trump's comments, Houston Rockets point guard Chris Paul suggested that the President is hiding behind his Twitter account, or in this case a podium, and would not criticize the NFL players in person.
Shortly after, Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James called the President a "bum" when Trump disinvited Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry from a White House visit after Curry had already said he wouldn't go. Later, the entire Warriors team said it would pass on the visit.
Giants owners John Mara and Steven Tisch also scolded Trump:
During a campaign style rally in support of Republican Senate candidate Luther Strange in Huntsville, Ala., Trump called for owners across the league to "fire" any player -- a "son of a bitch" -- who knelt during the anthem.
"Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, say, 'Get that son of a bitch off the field right now? Out. He's fired. He's fired!'" Trump said.
On Saturday, athletes lined up to take shots at Trump.
And NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell defended the players in a statement that didn't mention Trump by name.
Players -- primarily black players -- across the NFL, including Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins, have been kneeling, raising fists in the air, or sitting during the anthem in an effort to protest social injustice and criminal justice reform in primarily minority communities.
Jenkins has met with the Philadelphia police commissioner, community leaders, and even made several trips to Capitol Hill to advocate for the cause that began when former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began kneeling during the anthem.
Meanwhile, Eagles defensive end Chris Long -- who is white -- recently joined Jenkins' protest during the anthem, saying Trump is not doing enough to combat racism and white supremacy after the protest in his hometown of Charlottesville that ended in the death of a protester and two state police officer.
"If anybody has an issue with somebody being an ally of somebody fighting for equality in a week like this, against white supremacy," Long said last month. "I think that that's sad. I don't think the President has done a good enough job of striking that down. I share that sentiment with a lot of people.
"With or without the President's reaction, this is something as Americans ... The reason I stand for the anthem is because I'm standing for Americans and what we can be. If you looked at my hometown this weekend, as much hatred as there was, there were a lot of people of every color and creed who stood up against hate. That's kind of why I'm inspired to stand for the anthem. I hope that one day, everyone can look at that anthem and think 'that's my anthem"
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie recently threw his support behind Jenkins and players using their platform to raise awareness.
"Social injustice is a big problem in America," Lurie said earlier this month. "It's a big problem around the globe. Anybody who wants to do proactive things to try to reverse social injustice, I'm all in favor of. It has to be respectful. It certainly has to respect the military and the men and women who serve our country. Emergency responders. Whoever that is. If you do it in a respectful way.
"I applaud anybody that can find respectful ways of trying to find their platform in some way. We all need to discuss social injustice. We've all seen it. It's multiple issues. It's not simple racial issues. There's a lot of economic issues. Players have grit and determination, there's no boundary on how that grit and determination gets expressed. Sports is an opportunity to bring people together. I applaud when players can bring communities together. We see it all the time. I think it's great."