L.A. Times Survey: Most Republicans Believe NFL Goes Too Far On Race

An updated poll about the NFL Los Angeles TimesSurveyMonkey reports that culture wars have eroded the support for the league. L.A. Times. Many Republicans are critical of the league, believing it is trying too hard to please blacks.

About a third of those surveyed nationwide said their approval of the NFL has declined in the past five years. Only eight percent of those surveyed have greater respect for the NFL now.

The poll revealed that people who are less fond of the NFL now tend to be either Republicans or Republican-leaning independents. In the five last years, only a fourth (fourth) of Democrats had lost faith in the NFL.

Five years ago, what happened? America — and cop-hating protests were in full force on National Football League playing fields and many angry fans stopped watching the games (evidenced by above photo of Colin Kaepernick, center, and teammates). Social justice warrior players pounded on the polarizing theme of America as the land of so-called “systemic racism”, and the NFL bought into that theme.

Lauter attributes the decline in approval to two questions, each of which concerns how the NFL has dealt with race-related issues that have occurred since. Disapproving poll respondents believe the league is doing “too much to show respect for its black players.” This poll finding offers evidence that many Americans reject the NFL’s ongoing social justice activities, visible on playing fields, helmets, PSAs, Super Bowl pre-game features and NFL support for the “Inspire Change” initiative advocating for the defunding of police departments.

Fans were disappointed when the league sold out to the Marxist-founded Black Lives Matter group in 2020. Roger Goodell, NFL commissioner apologized publicly to Colin Kaepernick (the former player who sparked the protests).

Lauter wrote:

“The group who say they are now lesser fans is disproportionately Republican, the poll found. Nearly half the people who identify themselves as Republicans, independents or leaning to the GOP stated that their fan interest has declined in the past five years. By comparison, only one-quarter of Democrats and independents who lean Democratic said that.”

Two-thirds of Americans believe that the NFL does not show enough respect to black athletes. This figure is 46% for Republicans, and 45 percent for Republican-leaning Independents. Only 5% of Democrats or Democratic-leaning Independents agreed with this view.

A fifth of all white Americans and fifty-seven percent for Democrats want greater social justice, and more attention to black issues. They are supported by only 9 percent of Republicans.

The Rooney Rule is a requirement that teams interview minorities for coaching jobs, and people who have less approval of the NFL are more critical of it.

Why wouldn’t people frown on the Rooney Rule? It has failed to increase the number of minority head coaches because teams aren’t serious about quota hiring practices. And it’s drawn criticism from all sides, including blacks.

A clear majority of Americans 62 percent — agree that the NFL has not responded well to the risk of long-term brain injuries among players.

According to Lauter, conservative Republicans are more likely to say in polls and in political debates “that discrimination against black Americans and other people of color is a thing of the past and that white Americans are now being discriminated against.”

Lauter also cited former President Donald Trump’s strong criticism of player kneeling as something that negatively influenced Republicans toward the NFL.