Malcolm Jenkins: 'Sometimes you've got to rock the boat to get a little bit of change'

Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins said Saturday he understands that some fans will be upset when he leads a protest against racism and inequality during the national anthem before the team's Monday Night Football game in Chicago.

"There's no comfortable way to change anything," Jenkins said after practice. "If somebody gets upset, then it's probably because they're not listening" to the reasons for the protest, which Jenkins said is not "anti-police" and has "nothing to do with the military, nothing to do with the flag itself."

"If you listen, the message has been the same across the board," in the various protests that have followed 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick's decision last month to sit during the anthem, Jenkins said. "The police are a key part of the solution, in this issue, across the nation."

People getting upset is "what makes you guys put these cameras in my face. That's what keeps this conversation going. Sometimes you gotta rock the boat to get a little bit of change," said Jenkins, who disclosed his plans to join the protest movement during a Friday evening appearance on 94 WIP.

Several teammates interviewed Saturday were generally supportive of Jenkins but didn't seem to know much about the protest, or to find it compelling, though Jenkins said it has been discussed this week. One African-American Eagle wanted to know what had happened, that so many reporters were gathered around Jenkins.

Earlier, Eagles coach Doug Pederson said he supported the right to protest, and said he thinks the protests have become less distracting as they have become less novel.

"Malcolm and I have talked about this. It's going to happen regardless of what I decide or say, and I respect the players' decisions on it," Pederson said. "The biggest thing is, I just don't want it to become a distraction to the rest of the team."

Pederson was asked how that might be prevented.

"You really can't," he said. "With the things that have gone on leaguewide, I really don't think it's been a distraction for teams. I know early on when Colin did his thing, it might have been, initially, because of the shock and awe of what happened. But I think now that everybody's sort of embraced it, and knows that it's going to happen, I think everybody's braced for it, so it won't be a distraction."

Jenkins said he, too, wants to avoid distracting his team from the goal of beating the Bears Monday night, but "at the same time, you can't ignore" what's going on in the country. "You can talk about real issues and real topics and still focus on the game," Jenkins said. He said last Sunday's 15th anniversary 9/11 remembrance could also have been viewed as a distraction, but it was a necessary one.

Jenkins acknowledged "a lot of mixed feelings" on the team. Pederson said he would join in if the entire team decided to make a gesture, in the interest of team unity, but Jenkins said "it definitely won't be the whole team."