OXNARD, Calif. - The Cowboys recognize the debate that rages around them.
Players are sensitive to the dispute that erupts when the constitutional right to protest collides with the patriotic fervor enveloping the anthem. The pressure to align with one ideological pole or the other is impossible to escape.
Our combative times require a choice. The Cowboys players have made theirs.
They choose team.
Skeptics reject the notion that the players have a choice. They maintain the Cowboys are simply falling in line with Jerry Jones, who said the players must stand with their "toe on the line" for the anthem.