The 2018 National Football League season is about to commence and once again — as we were a year ago — we’ll be talking as much about players kneeling as much as we’ll talk about touchdowns, first downs and superlative athletic prowess.

The NFL has issued an edict at the suggestion of Donald Trump that requires players who are on the field to stand while they play the National Anthem.

Some players are ignoring the mandate. They are continuing to kneel in protest of law enforcement policy relating to African-Americans. Some of them are raising a clenched fist. The players are angry that police in some communities treat black citizens differently from other Americans.

Of course, the president has managed to twist and contort the argument into something it is not. He blames the players — almost of them black — of disrespecting the flag and the military men and women who fight to defend it. He did so again this week. He is demanding the players who kneel be suspended by their team.

C’mon, man! It’s not about a player’s love of country. It’s about policing. It’s about the treatment of some Americans by law enforcement.

To suggest that the players are disrespecting our military, or the flag, or the nation is to reduce this discussion into another litany of maximum demagoguery.

Do I wish the players had employed another method to protest? Yes. However, I recognize what they’re doing, what they’re saying and we should allow them the opportunity to speak out.

Hey, it’s in the U.S. Constitution!