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Seattle Seahawks player Michael Bennett makes an exception and stands for national anthem
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Seattle Seahawks player Michael Bennett makes an exception and stands for national anthem

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett abandoned his national anthem protests for an evening and stood for the playing of the "Star-Spangled Banner" during Thursday night's NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals.

What happened?

During Thursday night's game, Bennett stood for the national anthem, and people took notice.

Bennett has been instrumental in promoting the kneeling demonstration, and has stood for the national anthem only one other time this season: after the Las Vegas shooting.

Bennett joined his fellow teammates in standing for the anthem, many of them with their heads bowed in respect.

What did he say about the the occurrence?

Bennett explained his decision in a comment to the Tacoma News Tribune, which was published on Friday.

"It was to signify that we are all with the military, and that we love them," Bennett said. "There's been this narrative that we don't care about the military. Today, we were honoring the military, so we wanted to be able to honor the military."

He continued, "I know a lot of people did not expect us to stand. They have this narrative about us that is not true. I have a lot of family that were military. It's never been about the military. If there is an opportunity to support them and be grateful for what they do, and the sacrifices, we want to be able to do that."

According to CBS Sports, Bennett further elaborated to reporters:  "We want to show gratitude for the men and women who serve this country. Today was one of those times we were able to show our support for them, what they do for us, how they sacrifice for their families. That's what it was about."

Bennett on Wednesday hinted that standing for the anthem might be an action in the works as Veterans Day approached.

Bennett's father is a U.S. Navy veteran, who served for a decade.

Bennett will also stand for next weekend's game, as Nov. 20 is the "Salute to Service" game.

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