Michael Sam, first openly gay player, retir for mental health reasons

Contents:

• BEFORE CARL NASSIB, MICHAEL SAM WAS THE NFL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK. HE NEVER PLAYED A REGULAR SEASON GAME.
• MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER, RETIR FOR MENTAL HEALTH REASONS
• WHAT HAPPENED TO THE NFL'S FIRST ACTIVE GAY PLAYER, MICHAEL SAM?
• MICHAEL SAM SAYS HE REGRETS COMG OUT AS GAY BEFORE THE NFL DRAFT
• MIZZOU'S MICHAEL SAM SAYS HE'S GAY
• JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU
• REMEMBERG MICHAEL SAM'S NFL, CFL REER AFTER RAIRS' CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE'S GAY
• JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU
• OBAMA NGRATULAT MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER DRAFTED BY NFL
• WHAT HAPPENED TO MICHAEL SAM? NFL'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER NGRATULAT CARL NASSIB ON SOCIAL MEDIA

BEFORE CARL NASSIB, MICHAEL SAM WAS THE NFL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK. HE NEVER PLAYED A REGULAR SEASON GAME.

Seven years before Las Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player to e out as gay on Monday, an all-Amerin om the Universy of Missouri risked a promisg reer wh a public claratn.

“I am an openly proud gay man, ” Michael Sam, a 24-year-old fensive end, told ESPN and the New York Tim Febary announcement followed a surprisg 12-2 season for Missouri, which won the SEC East and then the Cotton Bowl as Sam was named the SEC fensive player of the year.

On Tuday, Sam thanked Nassib for jog the ranks of LGBTQ football players, payg special tribute to the donatn Nassib ma to the Trevor Project, a nonprof foced on suici Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib announced June 21 on Instagram that he is gay, makg him the first active NFL player to e out. The NFL particular had faced cricism for allegedly askg prospects about their sexual orientatn and had been acced of hamperg players who spoke out favor of gay many profsnal athlet around the world, cludg several retired NFL players, had e out by 2014, no one who was still playg football had dared to make that move before story rurfaced on Monday when the 28-year-old Nassib, who was drafted by the Cleveland Browns 2016 and now plays for the Rairs, announced that he is gay a vio on Instagram. “Here’s the tth: Everyone ow Michael Sam such a b of gratu, ” Wa Davis, a former NFL rnerback who me out as gay 2012, told The Washgton Post on Monday.

MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER, RETIR FOR MENTAL HEALTH REASONS

He wasn’t the only gay man who stggled to fd a place the NFL after g retired NFL players have publicly intified as gay, begng wh Dave Kopay, who me out 1975, three years after leavg the sport. Michael Sam, who 2014 beme the first openly gay player to be drafted by an NFL team, announced on Twter Friday eveng that he is walkg away om football for mental health reasons.

After he failed to fd a al wh an NFL team, Sam signed wh the Montreal Alouett of the Canadian Football League, at which pot he beme the CFL's first openly gay player. 7, he beme the first openly gay player to play a regular season CFL game, though he did not register any tackl or sacks his appearanc.

One such example clus David Kopay, who was a former NFL athlete back the 1970s who me out as gay. His story was credibly spirg to future generatns of gay football players who may have faced siar challeng on their way to stardom. One such athlete is Michael Sam, the NFL's first active gay football player.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE NFL'S FIRST ACTIVE GAY PLAYER, MICHAEL SAM?

Given the lack of gay reprentatn the NFL overall and the still prent stigma surroundg diverse sexualy, this was huge for football. As stated by The Huffgton Post, 2013, Sam me out as gay to his ach and teammat, beg the NFL's first active gay football player.

Acrdg to the Advote, the Amerin Psychiatric Associatn ed to list homosexualy as a mental illns.

MICHAEL SAM SAYS HE REGRETS COMG OUT AS GAY BEFORE THE NFL DRAFT

An unknown Rams player even lled Sam a homophobic slur. He was also lled slurs by a teammate durg his time at the Universy of Missouri as well, though he was apologized to after beg angry and takg a stand agast the homophobic language. Reportedly, Sam is also pro football's first openly gay ach, markg another tremendo first for the athlete his reer.

MIZZOU'S MICHAEL SAM SAYS HE'S GAY

Carl Nassib this week beme the first active NFL player to e out as gay.

And wh his announcement, the Las Vegas Rairs fensive end jos a small group of openly gay men profsnal sports.

Former NBA center Jason Colls, who me out 2013 and beme the first openly gay athlete any of the four major US sports leagu, wrote that he was “very proud” of Nassib.

JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU

In 2014, unr a 10-day ntract wh the Brooklyn Nets, he ma history aga as the first openly gay man to play an NBA game. Back 2013, Michael Sam was a llege football sensatn who cid to e out as the only known gay profsnal football player at the time.

It was Augt of 2013 durg a team meetg, that Sam cid to announce to his llege teammat that he was gay. The word of Sam's g out as a gay player soon ronated throughout sports general as he was the only active, openly gay player at the time.

In the recent wake of Jon Gn's homophobic (among other thgs) rhetorics which were spewed a 2011 email that forced him to rign, was disvered that Gn ed the words "queer" and "faggot" to scribe Sam when the Rams drafted him back 2014 (for the rerd, Gn also scribed NFLPA executive director DeMrice Smh, who is Ain Amerin, as havg "lips the size of Michell [sic] tir. Michael Sam — the first openly gay player drafted by an NFL team — broke his silence on the homophobic and racist emails sent by former Rairs head ach Jon Gn, sayg he expects to see an ensug league-wi “crack down” on bigotry. Sam, 31, was referenced the hate-filled emails sent by the Super Bowl-wng ach first reported Monday by the New York Tim, llg NFL missner Roger Gooll a gay slur while claimg he should not have prsured the Rams to select “queers” the 2014 draft.

REMEMBERG MICHAEL SAM'S NFL, CFL REER AFTER RAIRS' CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE'S GAY

Michael Sam is the first openly gay player drafted by an NFL Wter/Getty Imag. Sam characterized Gn’s remarks as “unfortunate, pecially that the first active gay player who’s playg is on the same team, ” a reference to Las Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib, who me out June. In his email, Jon Gn lled NFL missner Roger Gooll a gay slur while claimg he should not have prsured the Rams to select “queers” the 2014 Scuteri/AP.

Sam said there are other gay players throughout the league who don’t feel fortable sharg their sexual orientatn. Openly gay athlete. Michael Sam is an openly gay Amerin football player, and received huge natnal attentn 2013 when he me out while still a leman on the Universy of Missouri's football team.

Michael Sam Wr Letter Warng Agast Missouri’s Anti-Gay Law. Hollywood Medium's Tyler Henry Opens Up About Beg a Gay Psychic. He believ he would now be on a roster if he’d waed to announce he’s gay.

JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU

Michael Sam beme the first openly gay player to appear a Canadian Football League game Friday nightAugt 10 2015 11:58 AMPopnography.

The first openly gay NFL draft pick signs wh the CFL's Montreal AlouettMay 22 2015 12:51 PMPopnography. Michael Sam Was 'Pretty Damn Sure' He Liked Dus After His First Gay Experience.

OBAMA NGRATULAT MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER DRAFTED BY NFL

'I will see if maybe I'm not gay, maybe 's a phase. Michael Sam on Meetg Gay NFL Legend Dave Kopay.

WHAT HAPPENED TO MICHAEL SAM? NFL'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER NGRATULAT CARL NASSIB ON SOCIAL MEDIA

He wasn’t drafted until the seventh round, but the player ma headl bee he had already ‘e out’ as a gay man, makg him the first gay man ever drafted to the NFL. The athlete opened up about the importance of rilience, his own g out procs and the adversy he faced on the football field as an openly gay man. His Missouri teammat knew he was gay his last year of school and protected and supported him, m this one cint.

While he’s found love sce g out — he was at one time engaged to Vo Cammisano, wh whom a kiss after beg drafted sparked a ton of headl, though they spl back 2015 — neher Michael Sam’s mother or father accept his inty as a gay man. Michael Sam's cisn to e out as gay advance of his arrival the NFL is urageo and historic and should be celebrated as such. And the generatnal inty of so many NFL cisn-makers and media discsn-amers has to be part of the reason gay football players rema reticent.

E., teams will pass on a gay player bee they don't want to be subjected to the extra, this young man knows all of this and is makg his cisn at least part bee of . The outsi world poss NFL players as clownish Neanrthals who will gnt sults at their first openly gay teammate as a means of managg their fear and disfort, and assum said gntg is a primary reason no active NFL players have yet e out. But like many of the elements we easily ascribe to the NFL's locker-room culture, this is a riture unsupported by and large, NFL players are twentysomethgs or early-thirtysomethgs for whom gay iends and lleagu are much more openly accepted than they were by prev generatns.

And by and large, NFL players aren't gog to be bothered by the arrival of a gay teammate as much as they'll be amed or annoyed by the attentn that follows. Michael Sam, an All-Amerin fensive leman om Missouri and the Associated Prs' SEC Defensive Player of the Year, said that he is gay an terview wh ESPN's "Outsi the L" on stated publicly what his teammat and ach at Mizzou have known sce Augt: "I am an openly, proud gay man. Assumg that he is drafted, Sam uld bee the first openly gay player the history of the NFL.