Eagles' Tavarres to stand for national anthem after being advised by agent

Myke Tavarres won't be sitting out the national anthem, after all.

Just hours after stating that he intended to do so in demonstration Thursday night, as Colin Kaepernick has throughout the preseason, the Philadelphia Eagles' rookie linebacker reversed course.

A conversation with his agent appears to have influenced the change.

"He plans on standing for the National Anthem," agent Corey Williams said in a statement, according to Tim McManus of ESPN. "Myke does not want to be a distraction to the Philadelphia Eagles organization. Myke's goal is and will always be to make the Eagles 53-man roster and help the team win a Super Bowl."

Williams also confirmed that he advised Tavarres against sitting out: "Yes, I did."

Tavarres had previously told ESPN of his support for Kaepernick and that he'd considered sitting out the national anthem in the Eagles' last preseason game.

"We've got an issue in this country in this day and age, and I feel like somebody needs to step up and we all need to step up," Tavarres said. "We've got that right.

"There's just a lot going on that people don't want to talk about, and I feel like us as athletes, we're looked at as role models. And I feel like with Colin Kaepernick, he's doing a great job for standing up in what he believes in, and most people may not like that, but that's his opinion, he's entitled to it, and I respect him for doing it."

Tavarres, who joined the Eagles as an undrafted free agent this offseason, remains in competition for a roster spot after sticking with the club through first wave of cutdowns.