NFL owners meetings close without new anthem policy

Rebounding TV ratings seem to have helped shelve the idea of a national anthem conduct policy in the NFL, as the annual fall owners meetings in New York concluded Wednesday without introducing punishments for demonstrations during the anthem, according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports.

Owners voted in May to instill rules for this season that would have required players on the field to stand for the anthem or risk team fines, though players would have the option to remain in the locker room.

The proposal was motivated - at least in part - by widely publicized criticisms from U.S. President Donald Trump last season over player demonstrations that were started in 2016 by quarterback Colin Kaepernick, now a free agent. Talks on the policy were shelved in July, however, and haven't been revisited.

Several players continue to protest social justice issues, including receiver Kenny Stills of the Miami Dolphins and recently signed safety Eric Reid of the Carolina Panthers.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell directed attention toward the league's work with the Players Coalition when pressed by reporters for an update on the status of the policy.

"The focus of both the NFLPA and the NFL, the clubs and our players, has been to focus on the effort of the players on the issues they have raised and how we can make their communities better," Goodell said. "They are incredibly passionate about that. They have brought these issues greater awareness and they are working in their communities to try to make them better. They are working on issues, such as criminal justice reform.

"We have reported over the last two days on the tremendous work that is being done in that area. Most importantly, we talked about the impact that our clubs and players are having working to address these issues."

The top 15 TV shows in September were all NFL games, according to Ben Strauss of The Washington Post, as scoring continues at a record pace through the first six weeks of the season.