Ryan O'Callaghan: 'Life's great now' for ex-NFLer who me out as gay

Contents:

• EX-PATRTS LEMAN RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, WHO ME OUT AS GAY, RELLS ROBERT KRAFT'S SUPPORT
• EX-NFL PLAYER RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, WHO IS OPENLY GAY, ON JON GN: 'IT'S NEVER OK' TO E HOMOPHOBIC SLURS
• FORMER PATRTS AND CHIEFS TACKLE RYAN O’CALLAGHAN OUT AS GAY
• FORMER NFL PLAYER RYAN O’CALLAGHAN COM OUT AS GAY: WHY IT MATTERS
• AARON HERNANZ’S ALLEGED GAY LOVER DCRIB YEARS-LONG RELATNSHIP NETFLIX’S ‘KILLER INSI’
• RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, FORMER NFL LEMAN WHO CAME OUT AS GAY, IS TELLG HIS WHOLE STORY
• 'LIFE'S GREAT NOW' FOR RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, THE EX-NFL PLAYER WHO ME OUT AS GAY
• RYAN O’CALLAGHAN: HIS GAY NATURE, HIS STORY OM FOOTBALL TO SUICIDAL TENNCY TO G OUT WH THE TTH! READ ALL HERE!

EX-PATRTS LEMAN RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, WHO ME OUT AS GAY, RELLS ROBERT KRAFT'S SUPPORT

Former NFL player Ryan O'Callaghan said New England Patrts owner Robert Kraft supported him when he publicly me out as gay two years ago and told him he will be "forever a Patrt. For (Kraft), who opens up to me about a gay iend, I am the most important person the world those few moments.

" O'Callaghan me out as gay 2017 after retirg om the league 2011.

Former NFL offensive leman Ryan O'Callaghan nmned the homophobic language ed by former Las Vegas Rairs ach Jon Gn and said he believ was right for him to step down due to the emotnal harm ed.

EX-NFL PLAYER RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, WHO IS OPENLY GAY, ON JON GN: 'IT'S NEVER OK' TO E HOMOPHOBIC SLURS

But O'Callaghan, who me out as gay 2017 after a six-year reer wh the Kansas Cy Chiefs and New England Patrts, said he's wag to pass judgment until he hears more om Gn, bee tim have changed over the last when to LGBTQ cln the sports world. "It don't matter when he said the f-word or ed (homophobic) slurs, 's never OK, " O'Callaghan told USA TODAY Sports.

I ed to hear 'no homo' type ments the NFL and slurs locker rooms growg up. " Gn rigned late Monday night as head ach of the Rairs amid reports that he repeatedly ed homophobic and misogynistic language a seri of emails over a perd of seven years – between 2011 and 2018. " Acrdg to the emails, first unveiled by The New York Tim, Gn ed a homophobic slur to scribe NFL missner Roger Gooll, nigrated the then-St.

Louis Rams' cisn to draft Michael Sam, who is openly gay, and mocked transgenr woman Calyn Jenner, among other racist and sexists Gettg rid of Jon Gn was easy. "If you're gay and closeted like I was, you qutn yourself and if you feel safe.

FORMER PATRTS AND CHIEFS TACKLE RYAN O’CALLAGHAN OUT AS GAY

"One of Gn's players Las Vegas, fensive leman Carl Nassib, me out as gay earlier this year as the only publicly out player the league.

FORMER NFL PLAYER RYAN O’CALLAGHAN COM OUT AS GAY: WHY IT MATTERS

"In my experience, all tak is knowg one gay person to change how you feel about the matter bee then the issue is humanized. Would (Gn) e the same homophobic language knowg about Carl now? Maybe 's changed his imprsn of gay people through Carl.

AARON HERNANZ’S ALLEGED GAY LOVER DCRIB YEARS-LONG RELATNSHIP NETFLIX’S ‘KILLER INSI’

But 's a clearexample of the fears and homophobic culture that n exist sports om top-level people who have power and are charge. "Gn is an olr guy, and a lot of homophobia is generatnal – 's g om people's parents' imprsns, " O'Callaghan said. "The more you humanize, the ls homophobia there is.

But the more homophobia is happeng behd closed doors, then the fear for someone to e out is gog to stay.

“Even as the first out gay player is petg on the Rairs and receivg wispread support om fans and teammat, acuntabily is necsary to ensure that all athlet n pete whout discrimatn and harassment, " Ferraro said. You n pick up Ryan O’Callaghan’s tobgraphy, My Life On The Le, which he talks about beg gay the NFL and his llisn urse wh suici, on Amazon by clickg here. From a ep red rner of a blue state, the nflicted young man had cid high school that he would never — uld never — live as a gay man.

RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, FORMER NFL LEMAN WHO CAME OUT AS GAY, IS TELLG HIS WHOLE STORY

While the 6-foot-7, 330-pound offensive tackle didn’t f any of the gay stereotyp, he cid shortly after g out to himself junr high school that he uld never let anyone else on his darkt secret. Over the years he had heard general ments om iends and fay members about gay people. Every utterance of a gay slur or a joke about gay men — and he heard them plenty when he was young — was like a knife to the gut.

"If you’re a gay kid and you hear someone you love say ‘fag, ’ mak you thk that their ey you’re jt a fag too, " O’Callaghan told Outsports on a recent vis to Los Angel for his first-ever Pri celebratn. Growg up a nservative area light years away om nearby San Francis, his own views of gay people had been shaped by those off-lor ments and the rare image on televisn showg a gay man he uldn’t relate to. He knew that the people his world would never accept him beg gay, and he uld never tly accept eher.

For O’Callaghan, football had e along about the same time as the realizatn that he was gay.

'LIFE'S GREAT NOW' FOR RYAN O'CALLAGHAN, THE EX-NFL PLAYER WHO ME OUT AS GAY

"No one is gog to assume the big football player is gay.

O’Callaghan learned very quickly that football was the bt place the world for a gay teenager to hi.

The bte, physil nature of the sport went agast every stereotype of gay men he knew. At his size, few people would spect he was gay, and if he was a football player on top of that, he felt his secret would be buried.

RYAN O’CALLAGHAN: HIS GAY NATURE, HIS STORY OM FOOTBALL TO SUICIDAL TENNCY TO G OUT WH THE TTH! READ ALL HERE!

"No one is gog to assume the big football player is gay, " he said. By his sophomore year he unrstood the playbook and was elicg attentn om opposg JV fensive-le ach across Shasta County. Every media image O’Callaghan had seen of gay men had featured chiseled featur and six-packs, so he let his appearance go, beg a "sloppy straight guy.

" He started chewg tobac bee, he figured, you don’t see many gay men TV and film dog that. He had spent untls nights imagg what to do a scenar such as this, all to make sure that no one would spect he was gay. "In llege football was a great ver for beg gay.