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PITTSBURGH -- Steelers offensive tackle Alejandro Villanueva gained national exposure for being the only Pittsburgh player to stand on the field for the national anthem on Sunday, but on Monday he said his separation from the team was unintentional and blamed himself for the occurrence. The Pittsburgh players decided Monday they will be on the field for the national anthem in future games, but they didn't yet know how they would represent themselves during the anthem.
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Steelers coach Mike Tomlin had said before Sunday's game that the team decided as a unit to stay in the locker room during the national anthem. Linebacker James Harrison said Villanueva's deviation from that plan took him by surprise.
Villanueva, a former Army Ranger who served three tours of duty in Afghanistan, tried to clear things up Monday.
He said he asked quarterback Ben Roethlisberger if he could stand in front of the tunnel to get a vantage point to see the flag. Roethlisberger agreed, and Villanueva ventured too far out trying to gauge where the flag was. He then considered tuning back, but by that point the anthem had started and he felt he could not turn around and leave.
"When everybody sees the image of me by myself, everybody thinks the team, the Steelers are not behind me, and that's absolutely wrong," Villanueva said. "I made Coach Tomlin look bad, and that is my fault and my fault only. I made my teammates look bad, and that is my fault and my fault only. ...
"This national anthem ordeal has sort of been out of control, and there's a lot of blame on myself."
He said he was not trying to be play the role of an outcast acting alone, and he understands why teammates would be frustrated.
"Unfortunately I threw my teammates under the bus, unintentionally," Villanueva said.
He added that he would continue to stand for the national anthem.
"People die for the flag. There's no way else to put it," Villanueva said. "I wish I could stay at home. I wish we could all play Call of Duty and not have to go to war. But some men, some women sign up for this tough challenge and they have to do it for the flag. When I see a flag on a mission, on the shoulder of a soldier, that reminds me that the guy's with me."
At the same time, Villanueva acknowledges his life experiences have been different from those of some of his teammates. He was born on a naval air station in Mississippi, spent part of his childhood in Europe and played college ball while attending the U.S. Military Academy (Army).
"I've learned that I don't know what it's like to be from Dade County, I don't know what it's like to be from Oakland," Villanueva said. "I can't tell you I know what my teammates have gone through, so I'm not going to pretend like I have the righteous sort of voice to tell you that you should stand up for the national anthem. It's protected by our constitution and our country. It's the freedom of speech."
Nonetheless, national support for Villanueva has exploded over the past day. His No. 78 jersey became the No. 1 seller on NFLShop.com and Fanatics.com since Sunday's game. It is one of the few times that the jersey of an offensive tackle has been more popular than the jerseys of Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers.
Steelers teammate Cam Heyward said he still supports Villanueva.
"He feels he had to do it. This guy served our country, and we thank him for it," Heyward told ESPN.
As for the Steelers' stance before future games, Roethlisberger said, "We've had a team meeting and discussed what we want to do. Moving forward, we will be on the field. What we do when we're out there will be determined. Luckily, it's not the night before a game where we have to make a decision. I know I want to be on the field. Cam wants to be on the field. and the guys in that locker room want to be on the field. We plan to be on the field this week in Baltimore."
