McNair insists the 'inmates' he was referring to were not players, but league execs he felt had too much controlGetty Images
Texans Owner Bob McNair made headlines last fall for his "inmates running the prison" comments, but now says the "main thing I regret is apologizing," according to Andrew Beaton of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. McNair said he "really didn't have anything to apologize for." McNair "insists the 'inmates' he was referring to were not NFL players, but rather league executives who he felt had more control over major decisions than the owners." Beaton notes McNair has been a "blunt, sometimes divisive figure on the frontlines during a historically tense period for NFL owners," and his "inmates" comments "made him a lighting rod for public reaction to the anthem protests." McNair said that the "picture that has emerged of him is incomplete," conceding that he has a "hardline view that the league's anthem policy needs change" but also saying that he has "quietly done community work that undercuts the public perception of him." McNair made his "controversial 'inmates' remark" at a meeting of owners and other league executives. McNair: "We were talking about a number of things, but we were also washing some of our dirty linen, which you do internally. You don't do that publicly. ... In business, it's a common expression. But the general public doesn't understand it, perhaps." In March, the Houston Chronicle reported the Texans are not "interested in any players who participated in pregame kneel-downs," which McNair denied. McNair said the Texans would "sign any player that can help our team" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 4/6).
