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A new poll is suggesting that the #BoycottNFL movement just might be real. The league has seen its lowest ratings in seven years and Colin Kapernick and the national anthem protests are suspected of being the reason why.

Ever since San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began protesting the national anthem by sitting or kneeling while the song is played before NFL games, fans and the country at large have picked a side for the most part. People and players who clearly understood the reasons why Kaepernick started his protest [police brutality, racial injustice] have supported him by buying his jersey or joining in the protests themselves. People who have no clue or choose to turn a blind eye to Kaepernick’s reasons have responded by saying he is disrespecting the country and its military. At the start of the season a silly #BoycottNFL hashtag emerged with people threatening not to watch football over the protests. A new poll is suggesting that the boycott just might be putting a dent in the league’s pockets.

In a “shock poll” conducted by The Sporting News, nearly one-third or 32 percent of adults are saying they are less likely to watch NFL football this season because of the protests.

The Sporting News writes:

Roughly 28 percent of African-American respondents say they’re more likely to tune in to an NFL game because of the protests vs. only 8 percent of whites and 16 percent of minorities. Whites are twice as likely as minorities to say they’re less likely to watch NFL game telecasts this season.

So far ratings for NBC’s Sunday Night Football is down 10 percent, ESPN’s Monday Night Football is down 19 percent and Fox’s late afternoon Sunday game was down 12 percent this week. So it seems that the only consistent viewership is coming from the early Sunday afternoon games.

It has to be mentioned that the poll was facilitated by Rasmussen Reports, which has a reputation for being Republican and right-leaning. But, this is still interesting to look at.

It seems that there is a segment of the football fan population that would really refrain from watching a football game, all because of the players they cheer for decided to say something about an issue affecting their communities, and in Denver Broncos player Brandon Marshall, directly impacting their quality of life.

On the flipside of that though, TSN contends that the drop off in ratings can be attributed to popular players like Peyton Manning [retired] and Tom Brady [suspended] not playing in any games yet as well as the lopsided scores or just bad games being played so far. TSN also suspects that presidential election coverage and people choosing to watch games online has played a role too.

While the NFL may not like the news, it seems like the protests are working. People have been forced to look at the issues Kaepernick and others are protesting and they are disgusted to the point that they would rather just look away, which is the problem to begin with. None of these #BoycottNFL people seemed to mind when the national anthem wasn’t being played at all before the games. In the midst of all of the controversy, it has been revealed that the military paid the NFL to have the anthem played and forced players to go out there and stand to show a sense of faux patriotism. So again, the drop in ratings and the #BoycottNFL movement speaks volumes to how football fans really feel about the players that they cheer for on Sunday and their place in the world.

Photo: WENN.com