EXCLUSIVE
Texans superstar DeAndre Hopkins[1] says there isn't much chance NFL players and Donald Trump[2] will ever have serious talks over their issues ... 'cause D-Hop says POTUS is too "closed-minded" to listen.
We got DeAndre -- who was one of many in the NFL last season that knelt during the national anthem -- out at LAX and he explained to us why the league's spat with Trump might never end[3].
"I think Trump is more closed-minded and he thinks the reason that we're kneeling is because of the flag," Hopkins says. "When that's like not at all the reason we're kneeling."
Hopkins and other NFLers have said repeatedly their actions are in protest to social injustices in America -- not the flag or the military ... but that's something Trump just can't seem to understand.
"I kneeled last year and one of my best friends is a Purple Heart veteran and my uncle is a Purple Heart veteran and they understand that it's not about the flag."
"But, when a general person like that makes it look like, 'Alright, they're doing this because of the flag.' Then of course his followers are going to think the same. But, that's not the case at all, you know?"
DeAndre says he's sure NFL players will ignore the new rule[4] the league just put in place -- seemingly in part because of Trump's issues with it all -- and will take knees during the anthem once again this season.
"I've seen a couple owners that said they would pay for the fine, so respect to those owners that said they would pay for our fines because they understand why we're