Before Carl Nassib, Michael Sam was the NFL’s first openly gay draft pick - The Washgton Post

Contents:

• BEFORE CARL NASSIB, MICHAEL SAM WAS THE NFL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK. HE NEVER PLAYED A REGULAR SEASON GAME.
• MIZZOU'S MICHAEL SAM SAYS HE'S GAY
• MICHAEL SAM, STAR MISSOURI FENSIVE END, OUT AS GAY
• WHAT HAPPENED TO MICHAEL SAM? NFL'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER NGRATULAT CARL NASSIB ON SOCIAL MEDIA
• N.F.L. PROSPECT MICHAEL SAM PROUDLY SAYS WHAT TEAMMAT KNEW: HE’S GAY
• JAGUARS ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT
• RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE’S GAY, AN N.F.L. FIRST
• RAMS CUT MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER DRAFTED
• MISSOURI FOOTBALL STAR: “I'M AN OPENLY PROUD GAY MAN”
• MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER, RETIR FOR MENTAL HEALTH REASONS
• NFL'S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK CELEBRATED BY KISSG HIS BOYIEND
• ST LOUIS RAMS CUT MICHAEL SAM, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY NFL PLAYER

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

MIZZOU'S MICHAEL SAM SAYS HE'S GAY

“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.

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, STAR MISSOURI FENSIVE END, OUT AS GAY

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.

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

"In 2014, "Gay Man to Enter Workforce" has the everyday-occurrence sound of a headle The Onn. "And I ed that opportuny jt to tell them that I was gay.

"Sam had dner on Saturday wh Dave Kopay, a former NFL player who said he was gay 1975 -- three years after his playg reer Sunday night, the NFL released a statement supportg Sam. "Among other male pro athlet who have said they are gay, Jason Colls, a 12-year NBA veteran, me out a Sports Illtrated article at the end of the 2012-13 regular season, but has not played for a team sce.

N.F.L. PROSPECT MICHAEL SAM PROUDLY SAYS WHAT TEAMMAT KNEW: HE’S GAY

Midfielr Robbie Rogers beme first openly gay male athlete to play a U. "I jt want to go to the team who drafts me, " he said, "bee that team knows about me, knows that I'm gay, and also knows that I work hard.

"Sam rejects the appallg slanrs that sometim have been hurled at gay men. "I mean, people will talk about the stereotype of gays beg the locker room... To me, I thk that 's a ltle stereotyped that gay people are predators.

JAGUARS ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

"If a gay person did that, I wouldn't ll that person weak.

Of tryg before all of that, before Sam me to terms wh who he is now as a 29-year-old man, wh his days on the field behd him, Sam said a short sentence that moved mountas: "I'm Michael Sam, I'm a football player, and I'm gay. Sam enterg the draft procs as an openly gay man was a lm tt for acceptance of LGBTQ+ people as full people; for Ameri's most profable men's sports leagu and how ready they were for an openly gay player; for a media so eager to get the story whout the abily to really unrstand . A prospective NFL player jt told the world that he is gay.

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

By 2014, felt like Ameri was overdue to have an openly gay man playg one of the big four Amerin athletic leagu, the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL.

In 2013 alone, Olympic diver Tom Daley, WNBA player Brtney Grer, soccer players Abby Wabach and Robbie Rogers were among at least 77 athlet to e out, acrdg to know, of urse, that Sam wouldn't be the only gay man Ameri's top-tier men's sports -- jt the only out one.

The implitns of havg a gay or bisexual man playg at the top level of Amerin sports was not lost on anyone at the time. Erik Hall, then a grad stunt and sports reporter for the Missourian, rattled off everyone he uld rell who knew Sam was gay. "Instead, he said, "They jt foced on gay, gay, gay, gay, gay.

RAMS CUT MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER DRAFTED

The year before Sam told the world he was gay, had been revealed that potential NFL rooki were still fieldg tsive, homophobic qutns durg the recg procs (as of 2018, they still may have been).

"I thk is hard if you're a gay or bisexual or queer profsnal athlete, " Barn said. '"The NFL -- and men's profsnal sports general -- seemed to be fairly ready for a gay man to play but they also weren't. "At the time, the way the "distractn" label was placed on Sam was as though the fact that he was gay and of self was a distractn to any prospective team.

"When you talk to athlet who aren't out, they will tell you they don't want to be a 'gay football player, ' they want to be a 'football player who also happens to be gay, '" Davis explaed.

MISSOURI FOOTBALL STAR: “I'M AN OPENLY PROUD GAY MAN”

"And that is a distctn for someone who has been playg this sport that has been their domant inty before they knew they were gay, for many of them. Davis says he got a ll om head ach Jeff Fisher almost immediately after Sam did; Fisher need guidance on what uld mean to have Ameri's first openly gay player as a rookie on his team.

By the time he tweeted this, his football reer had been over for a the College Athlete Vers Sam the Pro AthleteBack when Sam me out to his llege teammat the summer of 2013, the amount of support he had was unter to every stereotype you uld thk of when to homophobia and sports. It's the headle that is burned my bra: "Michael Sam, Our Great Gay Hope.

"So this leav wh an asterisk next to Sam's name the rerd books and profsnal roster upon profsnal roster whout one openly gay or bisexual man's name.

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

But wh nversatns wh other people the gay muny, there has been a perceived chillg effect on other profsnal athlet g out. "What I believe is different now, is that athlet if they personally intify as gay, you will see more athlet tweetg and openly embracg this athlete, whereas before, when he was drafted was crickets.

NFL'S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK CELEBRATED BY KISSG HIS BOYIEND

'"Hall recently terviewed Kyle Goodw, a gay diver om Sam's alma mater, Mizzou. "He said Michael Sam was a huge fluence on him g out, " Hall Hall and Barn agree that a shift toward acceptg a gay player might be generatnal.

ST LOUIS RAMS CUT MICHAEL SAM, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY NFL PLAYER

Lookg back, the advice he would give the next potential gay football player, is that he should e out his own time. Sam says he is gay, and he uld bee the first openly homosexual player the NFL. (AP)Missouri All-Amerin fensive end Michael Sam has publicly acknowledged that he is gay, makg him potentially the first openly gay NFL terviews wh ESPN, The New York Tim and Outsports that were all published Sunday, Sam said his teammat and ach at Missouri have known sce Augt.