Brandon Marshall kneels during the national anthem at the NFL Kickoff game
Protesting football player Brandon Marshall just lost his second sponsorship. The Denver Broncos linebacker joined Colin Kaepernick’s sit-out of the national anthem Sept. 8 by kneeling. In the span of three days, Air Academy Federal Credit Union and CenturyLink terminated their deals with him.
Local Colorado sponsor Air Academy swiftly dropped the NFLer as a spokesperson Sept. 9 after just five months. Their ties to serving the military community for six decades contributed to the decision. They made the announcement on their Facebook page Friday.
“While we respect Brandon’s right of expression, his actions are not a representation of our organization and membership. We wish Brandon well on his future endeavors,” the organization’s president and CEO Glenn Strebe wrote in a statement.
Marshall explained in a post-game interview with NBC Sports he was “not against the military” or the police but rather “against social injustice.”
Regardless of his reasoning, the linebacker lost another sponsor in CenturyLink Monday.
“We completely respect Brandon Marshall’s personal decision and right to take an action to support something in which he strongly believes,” the company said in a statement. “America is anchored in the right of individuals to express their beliefs.”
“While we acknowledge Brandon’s right, we also believe that whatever issues we face, we also occasionally must stand together to show our allegiance to our common bond as a nation,” the statement continued. “In our view, the national anthem is one of those moments. For this reason, while we wish Brandon the best this season, we are politely terminating our agreement with him.”
Though many NFL players have participated in the protest, it appears that Marshall is the only one facing repercussions.
However, Marshall told KUSA he seeks to continue his protest at the Sept. 18 game against the Indianapolis Colts.
“I prayed about it long and hard, and I feel like it was the right thing to do,” he told USA Today of joining the movement.
He also stated he will donate an “undisclosed” sum of funds to veterans programs and other charities.
