LEAKED: Miami Dolphins document about national anthem will anger many

The Miami Dolphins NFL organization released a statement explaining their policy on punishing players who protest the national anthem after it was reported that they had come to a decision on the issue.

Here's what they said

The NFL's new policy on protests during the national anthem require a statement from each team about how punishments will be handled. Because the Dolphins are among the first teams to have players report to training camp, they filed the statement with the NFL, which has been leaked.

According to the filing leaked to the Associated Press, Miami Dolphins' players could be suspended for up to four weeks.

Anthem protests are classified as "conduct detrimental to the club" in the document. The suspension could be either paid or unpaid, and could also include a fine.

The Miami Dolphins confirmed that they had submitted the rules, but did not comment on what punishments they had agreed on.

"The NFL required each team to submit their rules regarding the anthem before their players reported to training camp," the team said. "We will address this issue once the season starts. All options are still open."

How did we get here?

The protests began when former Forty-Niners quarterback Colin Kaepernick began to take a knee during the performance of the national anthem. This led to more players protesting, but the movement really caught fire after President Donald Trump weighed in and cursed the protests at a rally.

The NFL decided before the 2018 season that they would require players to stand for the national anthem if they were on the field, but they could decide to stay in the locker if they wished not to stand. Protests could be punished by each team.

Here's a local news report on the Dolphins' new rules: