North Ameri's four biggt pro sports leagu have had only 2 openly gay active players | CNN

what players in the nfl are gay

Players on 22 NFL teams have already had an out gay teammate, cludg six players wh the Arizona Cardals.

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IN 101 NFL SEASONS THERE HAS NEVER BEEN AN OPENLY GAY PLAYER

Carl Nassib is the first to ever play a down as openly gay, but the rt are still trailblazers. * what players in the nfl are gay *

But one nstant will rema as has for 101 years — there will be no openly gay or bi players on any of the 32 teams. There are closeted gay players the NFL right now and there have been every season for as long back as I n remember and the league is rife wh straight alli who say they would wele a gay teammate.

MEET THE 16 OUT GAY AND BI FOOTBALL PLAYERS THE NFL’S 103-YEAR HISTORY

Kev Maxen, an assistant strength and ndng ach for the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars, has bee the first male ach major U.S. profsnal men's sports to publicly e out as gay. * what players in the nfl are gay *

Fear of the reactn of teammat, fans, ach, executiv and sponsors and the tense media spotlight that would she (for a short while) on the first active gay player. There have been 13 players who are eher gay or bi and me out after their reers end, most recently Ryan Rsell, a fensive leman wh the Cowboys and Bucneers. The NFL Network produced a documentary on Smh beg gay.

The NFL has played for more than 100 years and there have been 16 gay or bi players to e out publicly. 16 and the first one to e out as gay while on an active roster.

JAGUARS ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

* what players in the nfl are gay *

Over the years, Outsports has known of a few other players who are gay but have never e out, even when retired. Jenks is gay and this was the the first time he wily discsed his sexual orientatn. In June, Carl Nassib of the Rairs me out as gay.

Kev Maxen is gay. No NFL ach had ever publicly e out as gay, so Maxen, an assistant strength and ndng ach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, kept quiet about his sexual orientatn.And that ma him angry — at himself.“It was an anger and hatred of myself bee I put myself a life where I was livg by other people’s l and not by my own,” Maxen told Outsports.

Men’s profsnal sports league to e out as gay.

IN POWERFUL REBE OF HATE, JAGUARS' KEV MAXEN MAK HISTORY G OUT AS GAY

The league, fans and teammat have shown support for gay and bisexual players. So why is so hard for to rema dog the job we love? * what players in the nfl are gay *

Former San Francis 49ers offensive assistant Katie Sowers beme the NFL’s first ach to e out as gay 2017. First-year Sparks ach Curt Miller, who ached the Connecticut Sun for seven years before that, has been out for s.Acrdg to the article, Maxen ma his cisn to do so last year and reached out for advice om Carl Nassib, who 2021 beme the NFL’s first out gay active player as a member of the Las Vegas Rairs.It was Nassib who put Maxen ntact wh Outsports.

Jacksonville Jaguars associate strength ach Kev Maxen me out as gay on Thursday what is believed to be a first for a male ach major U.

NFL ACH BE FIRST MALE ACH MAJOR U.S. MEN’S PRO SPORTS TO E OUT AS GAY

Carl Nassib is one of only two openly gay active players the history of the four biggt North Amerin sports leagu – the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL. Experts say homophobia sports begs at the youth level. * what players in the nfl are gay *

Kev Maxen me out as gay an terview wh Outsports.

What Kev Maxen has done, g out as gay, makg him what's believed to be the first publicly out male ach major Amerin men’s profsnal sports, is brave enough.

NFL ASSISTANT ACH OUT AS GAY

In this story:Jacksonville JaguarsJaguars associate strength ach Kev Maxen beme the first publicly-known male ach Amerin men’s profsnal sports to e out as gay Thursday.Maxen spoke wh Outsports to share his journey and why he’s choosg to e out publicly.“I don’t want to feel like I have to thk about anymore,” Maxen said. I want to be vol support of people livg how they want to live, but I also want to jt live and not feel fear about how people will react.”Maxen, who has been wh his partner Nick for over two years, exprsed that the ntued support om the people around him helped him feel fortable to share his news.“It wasn’t until recently—and wh the immense love and support of my fay, my iends, lleagu and peers, and the urage and sacrifice om my partner—that I realized I have the right and rponsibily to love and be loved, and that maybe sharg this will hopefully give someone else the strength to accept their own life and take ntrol of their own story,” Maxen said.Maxen also noted that he reached out to Carl Nassib, who is the only known gay NFL player the league right now, back Feb. Perkz/@rlnassib/@rkrelentls)When Kansas State offensive tackle and NFL hopeful Stt Frantz me out to the natn as gay, he shared that his teammat (to whom he'd e out earlier) had warmly received the news, a sign the most alpha of locker rooms may fally be ready for equaly.

Here's a list of players llege and pro ball who have proved you n be gay or bi and still n the gntlet.

THE 39 CURRENT NFL PLAYERS HAVE ALL PLAYED WH AN OUT GAY TEAMMATE

Roy "Sugar Bear" Simmons, an offensive leman for the New York Giants and Washgton Redsks, beme the send NFL player ever to publicly reveal he was gay. So Coach Vce Lombardi knew McDonald was gay when he took over learship of the team 1969, but ma clear there would be no discrimatn his locker room, those close to the legend say. Cornerback Wa Davis, who played preason wh the Tennsee Tans, Seattle Seahawks and Washgton Redsks and spent two seasons wh NFL Europe teams Berl Thunr and Barcelona Dragons, me out as gay 2012, nearly a after his retirement.

NORTH AMERI’S FOUR BIGGT PRO SPORTS LEAGU HAVE BEEN AROUND A BED 398 YEARS. THEY’VE HAD TWO OPENLY GAY ACTIVE PLAYERS

He would later nfirm his sexualy on CNN and s down wh ESPN to discs the challeng of growg up gay Jamai and playg football while closeted. He later cled to sign wh the Tennsee Tans and Dallas Cowboys before g out as gay at 24, he told Philalphia Magaze revealed to the magaze that he'd dated a male cheerlear at Purdue who had threatened to out him then.

He would later move to San Francis and jo the Fog, a gay gby team, and pen a g-out blog post 2015. Wyatt Pertet, a special teams player and receiver for Capal Universy, will be a sophomore this season. The Bachelor star and former football player (who was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted ee agent and was on the practice squad of the Oakland Rairs and the Philalphia Eagl) me out as gay April of 2021, sayg he had fally e to terms wh his sexualy and the "next step all of this was sort of lettg people know.

"He wanted everyone to know he was "still the same Colton everybody met on TV" and is "proud to be gay. The Rairs leman ma NFL history durg Pri Month 2021 when he me out as gay a heartfelt Instagram post, beg the first active NFL player to e out as member of the LGBTQ+ muny.

RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE’S GAY, AN N.F.L. FIRST

I jt wanted to take a quick moment to say that I'm gay.

The Hampton Universy player ma history October of 2022 when he me out as gay an Instagram Story post, beg the first out gay football player at a Historilly Black College or Universy. "Speakg to OutSports, he ntued: "Especially at an HBCU, young Black gay men need an outlet.

There hasn't been an out gay football athlete at an HBCU. Some people still believe that the NFL is a “homophobic” monolh where ’s “dangero” to be gay. Dpe Outsports chroniclg lerally dozens of piec of evince to the ntrary, there’s a ntued belief amongst some that NFL players would overwhelmgly reject a gay player if he me out.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* WHAT PLAYERS IN THE NFL ARE GAY

Meet the 16 out gay and bi players NFL history - Outsports .

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