HOUSTON — Carolina Panthers tight end Jeremy Shockey criticized members of the Houston Texans for not putting their hands over their hearts during the national anthem.
Shockey says he saw “about 10 players” who didn’t do the traditional gesture when the anthem is played, and he told some of them how he felt during Carolina’s 28-13 victory.
“I was pretty upset in the way they weren’t showing respect to America during the national anthem,” Shockey said. “This is America and you should at least give respect to America.”
Shockey’s statements didn’t make their way back to the Texans’ locker room before it closed, and the team had no comment. Shockey’s rant came in response to a reporter’s question about the Texans’ defense.
“This is America and this is just a game and they should not only be very proud of this country, but very gifted to be living here,” Shockey said. “Maybe they just forgot to do it or something, but I don’t see how you could forget to do that.”
Shockey sports a red, white and blue tattoo on his right biceps portraying a bald eagle draped in an American flag. He caught a 9-yard touchdown pass from Cam Newton in Sunday’s game, then pointed at linebacker DeMeco Ryans and appeared to yell at him and cornerback Jason Allen.
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