Houston Texans coach and general manager Bill O’Brien stated in June that he would join his players in kneeling during the national anthem if asked.
The 51-year-old reaffirmed Thursday after the team’s virtual kickoff luncheon that he would take a knee if the players asked.
“I think you asked me if the players asked me to take a knee, would I take a knee, and I said yes,” O’Brien said. “I’m not going back on that. I think now moving forward here we’re going to talk about those things as a team.”
O’Brien, who enters his seventh season as the Texans’ coach, pointed out it is a conversation that will be had after more pressing football matters dictated by deadlines.
“I think right now we have some things that we have to get done,” said O’Brien. “We have to get the roster down here by Saturday. We’ve got to review last night’s scrimmage. We’ve got several other things that are going on.”
O’Brien mentioned that the Texans could coordinate with the Kansas City Chiefs, their hosts for Week 1, on making a statement that would raise awareness of social justice causes across the league.
Said O’Brien: “I know we’ll get to that subject and we’ll talk about it and we’ll put a lot of thought into it and we’ll make the right decision, maybe along with Kansas City as to what we want to do to continue to really make people aware of the social justice initiatives that are taking place across the NFL.”
O’Brien, who has told players since his 2014 arrival that he will always have their back, is considered a partner with the players in their off-field advocacies. Social justice advocates receiver Kenny Stills, safety Michael Thomas, and safety Justin Reid have spoken highly of O’Brien’s willingness to listen.