Jaime A Cardenas

Nashville Tennessean

Titans wide receiver Rishard Matthews, while responding to a question proposed on twitter by a local TV producer, said he would step away from football if the NFL implements a new rule requiring players to stand for the national anthem.

As soon as his tweeted his response, Matthews, who again stayed in the tunnel for the singing of the anthem during Sunday's game against Miami, deleted his tweet. WSMV Channel 4 posted a screengrab of the tweet, which was a response to a question from one of their producers.

Here was the question posed to Matthews, "If NFL makes new rule on anthem.. will you still stay in locker room and face the fine/penalty?"

Matthews, in the now deleted tweet wrote: "No I will be done playing football."

Matthews, whose half-brother, Christopher Ruiz, died in Afghanistan in 2015, was presented with an American flag in his brother’s honor before a preseason game in August. The Titans' second-leading receiver so far this season, Mathews was drafted in the seventh round by the Dolphins in 2012. He joined the team as a free agent last season. Prior to being drafted, he played two seasons in college with former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

The Titans train later today and had media availability after their session. Matthews was not at his locker room, however, when media was allowed into the locker room. Head coach Mike Mularkey did not want to give a comment, saying he had just found out about the tweet p

After playing the last two weeks on the road, the Titans return to Nashville Monday night to host the Colts in Week 6 of the NFL schedule.

More about protests during the anthem

► Why do NFL players protest during anthem? A timeline: From Kaepernick to Trump.

► What do veterans think about kneeling during the anthem? Views are diverse.

► Commissioner says 'Everyone should stand for the National Anthem'

► Trump tweets it's 'about time' NFL, Roger Goodell make players stand for anthem

► Can the NFL convince players to stop national anthem protests?