Jelani Jenkins ends protest, but three Dolphins kneel again during anthem

Dolphins players again kneeled during the playing of the national anthem Sunday. But their numbers dwindled by one.

Ahead of the Dolphins’ game against the Patriots, Arian Foster, Michael Thomas and Kenny Stills again used the anthem to protest the treatment of African-Americans by police officers.

But Jelani Jenkins, who participated in last Sunday’s demonstration, did not. Jenkins said in recent days that he would “stand united with my teammates and the Miami Dolphins organization during the national anthem” this week.

Stills in a statement Tuesday said that he would continue to kneel with his hand over his heart to “continue drawing attention to the important issues we face as a society.”

Their actions have been met with anger in some quarters. Some fans have threatened to cancel their season tickets going forward. The union that represents Broward sheriff’s deputies is asking for team-sponsored police escorts to stop until the team forces players to stand for the anthem.

This story was originally published September 18, 2016 at 1:05 PM with the headline "Jelani Jenkins ends protest, but three Dolphins kneel again during anthem."