.To start this season, that wave of Seahawks has dwindled to only two players

Last season Limited Michael Brockers Jersey , the Seattle Seahawks led the league when it came to the number of players willing to make a statement while the national anthem played.Linemen Duane Brown and Quinton Jefferson walked off the field and waited in the tunnel while a field-sized American flag was unfurled and the national anthem played before their season opener Sunday in Denver.In a league where more than 200 players once took some sort of action to protest police brutality and social injustice in America during the anthem, The Associated Press counted fewer than 10 across the league who did so on the NFL's opening Sunday. Only two of them — Albert Wilson and Kenny Stills of the Dolphins — kneeled while the "Star-Spangled Banner" played.None of which bothered Brown much. He says he's committed to what he's doing."I made my decision," he said. "That was my decision. I wasn't paying attention to what other teams or other players are doing."The lower numbers might reflect a new strategy many players are embracing to draw attention to the issues Colin Kaepernick raised when he began kneeling for the anthem in 2016. The then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback was looking to shine a light on issues impacting African American communities.Since then, a group of NFL players have formed the Players Coalition . They want to move the focus away from the anthem, which has become a lightning rod, in part because of President Donald Trump's continued criticism of players who don't stand during the anthem."We're trying to move past the rhetoric of what's right or what's wrong in terms of the anthem, and really focus on the systematic issues that are plaguing our communities," said Malcolm Jenkins of the Eagles, one of the group's co-founders, who is no longer protesting during the anthem.And yet, if Kaepernick is on board with all of that, it wasn't clear Sunday. He took to twitter to praise Wilson and Stiles ."My Brothers (Stills) and (Wilson) continue to show their unwavering strength by fighting for the oppressed," Kaepernick said in his tweet. "They have not backed down, even when attacked and intimidated. ... Love is at the root of our resistance."Kaepernick's message got through to his friends in Miami."I know he has our back," Stills said. "Really, there has been a huge difference between when we first started protesting and now. A lot of people are reaching out and supporting us, so I really appreciate that. To everybody out there ... let's keep doing our best to make positive change and have these conversations and make our country a better place."Since opting out of his contract after 2016, Kaepernick has been unable to land a job with an NFL team and is suing the league for collusion.But his voice is still being heard. Last week, Nike introduced an ad featuring the quarterback and his message: "Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything."Other than Stills, Wilson and the two Seahawks, Dolphins defensive lineman Robert Quinn raised his fist during the anthem. Niners receiver Marquise Goodwin did the same at San Francisco's game at Minnesota. In Los Angeles, Chargers left tackle Russell Okung raised his fist. And back in Denver Joe Namath Jersey , Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas and linebacker Brandon Marshall retreated to their tunnel while the anthem played.Marshall sent out a statement touting a charity designed to help people who are on the verge of homelessness."It is time that we build social currency by way of empowering our future generations," Marshall said. "This begins by addressing the most fundamental needs — by feeding the minds and bodies."This came hours after Trump opened the day with a tweet that took digs at the NFL, linking low ratings for Thursday night's opener between Atlanta and Philadelphia (lowest for an opener since 2008) to players who refuse to stand for the anthem."If the players stood proudly for our Flag and Anthem, and it is all shown on broadcast, maybe ratings could come back? Otherwise worse!" he tweeted.CBS and Fox, which carried Sunday afternoon's games, did not televise the anthem.However, NBC did show the anthem Thursday night (but not before Sunday night's Bears-Packers game), and no players kneeled or protested in other ways.But while the tumult over the anthem appears to be dying down, the NFL still hasn't collaborated with the players union to come up with a definitive solution.In May, the league briefly put a policy in place, but rescinded it after the union filed a grievance. The union and league are still negotiating. Brown, of the Seahawks, said he has not received any message from the union to tamp down the protest."I don't think that would be the best idea to try to get people to move on from it," he said. "The country hasn't moved on from it, so I'm not going to move on from it either." The Bears defense has been very good all season. And the Rams have their share of playmakers and stars on that side of the ball.But while the temptation is to make Chicago’s 15-6 win a testament to great defense, it was perhaps more of a situation of two quarterbacks playing poorly.Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky played less poorly. He threw for 110 yards and had three interceptions, and was clearly the better of the two.Rams counterpart Jared Goff was, to be blunt, a real mess. He finished 20-of-44 for 180 yards and four interceptions, for a 19.1 passer rating. The turnovers were bad, but the 4.1 yards per pass attempt might have been as egregious a number. Beyond the stats, however, Goff looked uncomfortable throughout the night Nolan Cromwell Jersey Salute to Service , whether the culprit was his own teammates stepping on his feet, getting subtly whacked in the head as he threw, or the cold weather.Or, you know, the Bears defense.From the safety which opened the second half to the fourth quarter/fourth down sack by Akiem Hicks, the Bears were able to keep Goff in the pocket and under duress, and it was not a good thing for the Rams. When he’s not moving and in some kind of rhythm, he can look extremely average, if that.There might not many defenses that can make the Rams look so out of sorts, but the Bears have one, and it was good enough to overcome a subpar night from their own quarterback.Here are five more things we learned during1. No one was happier with the Bears Sunday night than the Saints. And the Saints were pretty happy to begin with, after clinching the NFC South title earlier in the day.With the loss dropping the Rams to 11-2, the Saints (11-2 with the head-to-head tiebreaker) once again have the inside track toward home field advantage in the NFC playoffs.And that’s incredibly important, considering what a difference location makes for the Saints in the postseason.Since Sean Payton took over in 2006, the Saints are 5-0 in the postseason in the Superdome. They’re 1-5 in another team’s building (and 1-0 at neutral sites, as in their Super Bowl win).While the Rams will certainly be glad to get in out of the cold, they don’t necessarily want to go indoors in New Orleans in January, after losing 45-35 there in November.2. The Bears (9-4) deserved bonus points for their third-quarter touchdown, simply for their extensive use of big men.The touchdown pass to spare tackle Bradley Sowell was slick, after he reported eligible and slipped out into the flat on the goal-line play.It was the fake to defensive tackle Akiem Hicks that helped sell it and get Sowell so open, as the Rams were line up in a jumbo personnel package and usually when people do that they run power plays.But the Bears decided to have fun instead. Football can be fun, even without 100 points on the scoreboard. Especially with fat guy touchdowns, and the ensuing fat guy dances. Football is better when fat guys do big fat things.3. On the other hand, sometimes bright young coaches can overcomplicate the game.The Bears defense is quite good Jacob McQuaide Jersey , that’s a given. But Rams running back Todd Gurley had just eight touches in the first three quarters (six carries, two receptions).Gurley entered the game with 1,649 yards from scrimmage and 19 touchdowns, and he’s their best offensive skill player. So maybe, you know, giving it to him more would have helped.Sean McVay is very smart, and knows more about drawing up offense than most people employed in the league (and certainly more than me). But he didn’t get the ball to his best player. It doesn’t have to be that hard.4. The Rams dodged a bullet when center John Sullivan was evaluated for a concussion in the first half, but was cleared and returned.Because they’re keeping extras elsewhere, the Rams have just seven offensive linemen on the roster.Rookie Brian Allen, their fourth-round pick, is the interior line backup, and he came in for a bit before Sullivan made it back. Fellow rookie Joseph Noteboom, their third-rounder, is the backup tackle, and he had to come in during the fourth quarter when left guard Rodger Saffold went down.It’s a good line, but that lack of depth could end up biting them at some point. And it’s the kind of risk you take when you swing for the fences by trading for expensive veterans and sign big-ticket free agents.5. The Bears lost a chance to catch the Rams off guard, when they caught an official off guard.After initially lining up for a punt, the Bears tried to run their offense back on the field, but tackle Bobby Massie knocked line judge Carl Johnson down to the ground. Officials stopped the game since he wasn’t in a position to call the play.That didn’t satisfy Bears coach Matt Nagy, since the Rams had a chance to adjust personnel. They ended up punting anyway.