O'Brien ready to take knee during anthem alongside Texans players

Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien said Friday he intends to kneel alongside his players during the U.S national anthem in protest of racial inequality.

"Yeah, I'll take a knee - I'm all for it," O'Brien said about players kneeling, according to the Houston Chronicle's John McClain. "The players have a right to protest, a right to be heard, and a right to be who they are. They're not taking a knee because they're against our flag. They're taking a knee because they haven't been treated equally in this country for over 400 years."

O'Brien, who is also Houston's general manager, has been among the most outspoken coaches in support of the Black Lives Matter cause.

Team owner Cal McNair, Texans players, including J.J. Watt, and O'Brien attended the funeral of George Floyd - the black man who was killed May 25 while in the custody of Minneapolis police - in Houston on Wednesday.

"It wasn't a conscious effort," O'Brien said about the Texans' response to Floyd's death. "It wasn't like we had a conversation together and decided to do it. I think we just said enough is enough, and we've got to do what's right. As an organization, we're part of the conversation, and we want to do our part."

Copyright (C) 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.