Patriots players locked arms with some team-mates during the Star Spangled Banner on Sunday against the Houston Texans, while other players knelt.

Brady has called Mr Trump a "good friend" in the past and one of the president's "Make America Great Again" hats was spotted in Brady's locker in 2015.

Mr Trump has often praised the quarterback on social media.

Brady skipped a White House visit with Mr Trump in April when the team celebrated its fifth Super Bowl title.

NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart also criticised Mr Trump, saying players' protests against racial inequality and police brutality are "real locker room talk".

This is an apparent reference to Mr Trump being caught on tape talking with Access Hollywood host Billy Bush about kissing, groping and trying to have sex with women.

Mr Trump later dismissed his remarks made in the 2005 video, which emerged a month before the November election, as "locker room talk".

Lockhart said: "Everyone should know, including the president, this is what real locker room talk is."

He added: "We don't seek to get into political debates or relish being in the middle of it, but extraordinary statements from our clubs and owners demonstrate just how deeply we believe in our players and in our game."

Democratic congressman John Lewis of Georgia, a prominent civil rights leader, said Mr Trump's comments about protesting NFL players were "beneath the dignity of the president".

Mr Lewis said he could not believe what he heard during the president's campaign rally in his native state.

He said Dr Martin Luther King Jr often said Americans have a right to protest for what is right.

Speaking outside the Capitol, Mr Lewis added that Americans have a long history of protesting with peaceful, orderly and non-violent actions.