The lack of viewers for Thursday night’s NFL game between the Packers and the Bears proved that pushing politics on one of the populace’s favorite sport just drives them away.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, CBS reported that 2017’s debut of Thursday Night Football is down a whopping 14 percent compared to the 2016 opener.

Thursday’s drop in viewership may have been attributed to the fact that the game was a blowout, but this lack of eyes on the screen is following a pattern. Last Sunday’s game between the Redskins and the Raiders saw a ten percent drop from the same game scheduled last year.

It probably didn’t help that the Packers actually asked their fans to participate in their protest along with them.

In an official statement from the team, the Packers asked fans to join along as the players linked arms during the national anthem to “represent a coming together of players who want the same things that all of us do—freedom, equality, tolerance, understanding, and justice for those who have been unjustly treated, discriminated against or otherwise treated unfairly.”

If more proof that the politically charged nature of the games is causing the falling ratings, then also up for evidence is DirecTV issuing refunds for people who had purchased NFL ticket packages.

People showed up to watch Football, but instead are forced to watch political grandstanding and virtue signaling which has sadly overshadowed the game itself. The blatant disrespect toward the country has left a bad taste in many mouths, and people would rather walk away from the table altogether than continue to consume something so unappetizing.