New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski did not give off a good vibe when CNBC hosts repeatedly asked him Friday about the NFL's national anthem protests.
Gronkowski shrugged and held a long pause when host Carl Quintanilla asked whether he was sick of answering questions about the protests.
"Is it overshadowing what should otherwise be an exciting season?" Quintanilla asked after Gronkowski looked around and avoided the question.
"It is an exciting season, and I just really focus on what I can do to help out the team every single week," Gronkowski said.
The hosts of "Squawk Alley" did not stop asking about the protests and the business implications for the NFL, however, and Gronkowski responded with visible hesitancy.
Gronkowski was on to discuss the hologram messaging app Mojiit with the app's inventor, Jeremy Greene. After the CNBC hosts asked about the NFL several times, Greene told Gronkowski that he did not have to comment.
"I think that whole thing is just negative, and he likes to focus on things that are positive, like this app," Greene said.
"I just focus on positivity," Gronkowski said.
Asking a total of five questions about the NFL's situation, the hosts still could not get Gronkowski to elaborate on whether he was concerned about the health of the league.
"I'm just trying to put on the best show I can every Sunday," Gronkowski said.
Patriots four-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Tom Brady has credited head coach Bill Belichick with "brainwashing" the players not to be distracted from the game.