Minneapolis, MN - There's a lot going on throughout the league today on and off the field. Comments on social media from politicians and others pushed many to take a stand today.
For the Minnesota Vikings and their players, that stance was unity.
Prior to the game the Vikings ownership released a statement claiming that "rather than make divisive statements, we believe in promoting thoughtful, inspiring conversation that unifies our communities."
During the pregame National Anthem, the team joined by the ownership group and general manager Rick Spielman linked arms across the sidelines to showcase unity.
After the game a handful of players & coaches talked on the issue.
"I'm glad our guys are a team," Mike Zimmer said. "I'm a football coach, I'm not a politician. I'm not getting into any of that."
"I think our [unified front] summed it all up," safety Harrison Smith said. "It's a unified front. Guys feel different ways about different things going on right now and we just wanted to show that guys from different backgrounds, front office guys, ownership, we are all in this together. Just as we are all in this as Americans."
"It was kind of a team thing [to lock arms]," defensive end Brian Robison said. "It's not one person's idea, it was all about the team.
"I think that we have a brotherhood in this locker room," wide receiver Adam Thielen said. "We don't care who we're playing with, we're all brothers, we love each other and we're going to go out and fight for each other. We have a lot of respect for this country, but at the same time we know that there's things that need to be talked about. Like I said, we have a lot of love for each other in this locker room, and we're going to go together and fight together.
"I think the biggest thing is that we're all brothers," tight end Kyle Rudolph said. "We're all here to help one another. Yet the biggest thing is that we still respect our flag and what it stands for and the men and women that served that allow us to go out there and do what we do. We felt like that was the best way to show that we're here for both. We respect what that means, but we also love one another and know what one another go through on a daily basis. Football is such a microcosm of what the world should be and all of sports."