Tennessee Titans wide receiver Rishard Matthews said he would be done playing football when asked on Twitter if he would accept a fine or penalty if the NFL instituted a new rule for the national anthem, then later deleted the tweet.
Matthews' response Thursday to a reporter from his verified account was captured by a screen grab.
However, on Friday, he stated, "Regardless of the tweet I sent out, you know, I'm a man. You know, sometimes you make bad decisions at the wrong time, and at that time, I made a bad decision to tweet that out at that given moment."
When asked if he stands by his statement, Matthews said, "Not right now. You know, let's hope it doesn't get to that. I know the owner's got a meeting next weekend, so let's just hope we don't get to that."
He added it was something he tweeted out at that moment that he called "ignorant" and confirmed he takes full responsibility for his words.
The starting receiver has stayed in the locker room during the national anthem through the last two games in protest of President Donald Trump's comments on NFL players.
Titans coach Mike Mularkey said he could not comment because he learned of Matthews' tweet after practice and had not talked to the player yet.
