AP

Regardless of whether the NFL previously had an anthem policy gag order, it has one now. Even if it only relates to one owner.

Via Clarence E. Hill, Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the NFL has instructed Cowboys owner Jerry Jones to quit talking about the anthem policy.

Last week, Jones said that his players will be on the sideline and standing for the anthem, ignoring both the fact that the NFL’s Anthem Policy 2.0 (which currently has been tabled) permits players to stay in the locker room and the fact that the NFL and NFL Players Association may negotiate an Anthem Policy 3.0 that preserves in some way the players’ right to protest during the anthem.

Jones had been scheduled to conduct a round of interviews on Sunday evening with Dallas-area media outlets, and those outlets were informed that there could be no questions about the anthem policy. FOX 4 canceled its interview given the limitation on the questioning.

Via Hill, Mike Doocy of FOX 4 explained that he made the decision to kill the interview after being told at the last minute he couldn’t ask any questions about the anthem policy. While it would have been better for Doocy to have been allowed to ask the questions with Jones simply declining to answer, it’s hard to pass on a chance to sit down with Jones, even with restrictions. Given the Dez Bryant situation and every other issue involving America’s team, why not do the interview and simply tell the audience that, shortly before the session started, the Cowboys slammed the door on any anthem questions?

The league has now slammed the door on any anthem comments from Jones. It remains to be seen whether he’ll be punished for the things he already has said. Given that this would simply give the primary resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue another reason to attack the NFL, the league may choose not to pick Jerry’s deep pockets over this one — unless he defies the direct order to quit talking about the anthem policy.