NFL philadephia eagles
The incident occurred when the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots game on August 16Reuters/USA Today Sport

Several players from the National Football League (NFL) did not take the field during the playing of American national anthem as they continued to stage silent protests against racial injustice and police brutality in the US.

Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins and cornerback De'Vante Bausby stood in the tunnel during the playing of the anthem for Thursday night's game against the New England Patriots, reports The Hill magazine.

They ran onto the field after the song ended and were soon joined by defensive end Michael Bennett, who reportedly stayed in the locker room during the song. Jenkins had appeared for the warmup wearing a T-shirt that read "You aren't listening." 

Jenkins' quote on his T-shirt is reportedly for President Trump and the people who felt that he was disrespecting the American flag and the armed forces. He held placards in June which also said, "You aren't listening". Jenkins' believes that it is about social justice, equality and police-community relations. 

Last week, Jenkins and Bausby both raised their fists during the national anthem at a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in protest.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump took to Twitter to renew his attacks on NFL players, claiming they just "wanted to show their 'outrage' at something that most of them are unable to define".

The NFL sought to end the controversy over national anthem protests by imposing a policy earlier this year that would prevent players from protesting during the national anthem. 

The policy was later placed on hold after drawing a wave of complaints from players and fans.

On-field demonstrations began last year with former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, who gained notoriety after he knelt during the national anthem to protest the treatment of people of colour in the US.

(With inputs from IANS)