Protests against the national anthem are not stopping. If anything, they’re becoming more pronounced — and uglier.

The latest incident occurred Monday night when three Philadelphia Eagles defensive players — Malcolm Jenkins, Ron Brooks, and Steven Means — stood together with raised fists before their game against the Chicago Bears.

“We believe very strongly in patriotism in the NFL.”

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The trio said they decided to wait a week — out of deference to 9/11.

“Last week, we talked about doing some stuff, but we wanted to make sure that we didn’t do anything to take away from the families that suffered from 9/11,” Jenkins said in a radio interview on Friday before the game.

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But doesn’t this entire protest go against all that 9/11 stands for?

He added that he expects more players to follow suit, saying, “Moving forward, I’m sure there will be guys that will probably join in.”

On Sunday, guys joined in from the Miami Dolphins. Three players — Arian Foster, Kenny Stills, and Michael Thomas — knelt during the national anthem.

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But some police are now fighting back. The Sunday move by the Dolphins players came days after the union for Broward County sheriff’s office said it wants police to stop providing protection for Dolphins players. The president of the union, Jeff Bell, also said that NFL players should forfeit their right to free speech while representing their team.

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“I respect their right to have freedom of speech. However, in certain organizations and certain jobs you give up that right of your freedom of speech [temporarily] while you serve that job or while you play in an NFL game,” Bell told the Miami Herald Friday. His remarks came a day after a group of fans burned team gear to show their anger over the anthem protests.

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Added Bell,  “I can only imagine the public outcry if a group of police officers refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance or if we turned our back on the American flag for the national anthem. There would be a public outcry and internal affairs complaints a mile long on that,” Bell told the Herald.

NFL Commission Roger Goodell on Sunday seemed to suggest the on-field protests were stopping.

“I truly respect our players wanting to speak out and change their community. We don’t live in a perfect society. We want them to use their voice. And they’re moving from protest to progress and trying to make things happen in communities,” he said in a statement. “I think where they’re moving and how they’re moving there is very productive and we’re going to encourage that.”

Related: Slammed for Disrespecting our Anthem

The NFL is not taking action against players who protest. Earlier this month, Goodell straddled the fence, saying, “I support our players when they want to see change in society, and we don’t live in a perfect society,” Goodell added. “On the other hand, we believe very strongly in patriotism in the NFL. I personally believe very strongly in that.”

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick started the movement when he chose to stay seated during the anthem. Other players — in other sports and at other levels of the game — have opted to kneel during the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Kaepernick said it was a gesture against racial injustice and police brutality.

The vast majority of Americans see it otherwise.