Jags' Maxen is first male Amerin pro sports ach to e out as gay - ESPN

Contents:

• KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY
• JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY
• JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT STRENGTH ACH KEV MAXEN OUT PUBLICLY AS GAY
• NFL ASSISTANT ACH OUT AS GAY
• THERE HAVE BEEN 11 KNOWN GAY PLAYERS NFL HISTORY
• BEFORE CARL NASSIB, MICHAEL SAM WAS THE NFL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK. HE NEVER PLAYED A REGULAR SEASON GAME.
• THREE GAY FOOTBALL PLAYERS FEATURED NFL NETWORK SEGMENT ON CARL NASSIB
• THE 39 CURRENT NFL PLAYERS HAVE ALL PLAYED WH AN OUT GAY TEAMMATE
• RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE’S GAY, AN N.F.L. FIRST
• CARL NASSIB OF LAS VEGAS RAIRS ANNOUNC HE IS GAY, PLEDG $100,000 TO TREVOR PROJECT
• CARL NASSIB BE FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER TO PLAY NFL GAME
• CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY N.F.L. PLAYER, HAS BEEN A FOOTBALL EVERYMAN
• CARL NASSIB, FIRST OPENLY GAY NFL PLAYER, TO BE RELEASED BY RAIRS
• CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY ACTIVE NFL PLAYER, ULD BE TURNG POT FOR MALE SPORTS
• 7 GAY NFL FOOTBALL PLAYERS

KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY

Kev Maxen has bee the first male ach a US men’s profsnal sports league to e out as gay. Per Outsports, as of September 2022, there have only ever been 16 players NFL history to publicly e out as gay or bisexual. Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player league history to announce that he is gay 2021.

Per Outsports, Maxen is the “first publicly out male ach a major Amerin men’s pro sports league, ” wh WNBA ach Curt Miller, who publicly me out to the media as gay 2015, also a publicly out male ach an Amerin profsnal sports league. 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.

Over the years, Outsports has known of a few other players who are gay but have never e out, even when retired. The NFL Network produced a documentary on Smh beg gay.

JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY

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.

-- Jaguars assistant strength and ndng ach Kev Maxen has bee the first male ach major Amerin men's profsnal sports to publicly e out as gay, tellg he ma the cisn bee he didn't want to hi who he is any longer and to possibly spire others siar 's a cisn and move that drew praise and support om owner Shad Khan, who was a vol and emphatic supporter of a cy ordance that expand protectns on the grounds of sexual orientatn, genr inty and genr exprsn. Outsi lebacker Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player to e out as gay and to play a game Associated Prs ntributed to this report. Jacksonville Jaguars assistant strength and ndng ach Kev Maxen cid on Thursday to e out publicly as gay hop of livg his life whout fear and to spire others.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT STRENGTH ACH KEV MAXEN OUT PUBLICLY AS GAY

Before jog Jacksonville’s achg staff, he was a strength ach for the football teams at Baylor and Febary 2022, Maxen reached out to NFL player Carl Nassib, who me out as gay 2021, to seek advice.

The announcement today by former Patrts and Chiefs offensive leman Ryan O'Callaghan that he is gay brgs to seven the number of NFL known gay players NFL history who have played a regular season game.

In addn, four other players who me out as gay were NFL trag mps, some playg preason gam.

NFL ASSISTANT ACH OUT AS GAY

Kopay played wh two teammat who were gay: tight end Jerry Smh and nng back Ray McDonald.

Gay players have long been the NFL. Legendary Packers and Redsks ach Vce Lombardi — who had an openly gay brother — knew that some of his players were gay.

In the Outsports article on O’Callaghan g out, longtime NFL executive Stt Pli says he has unseled gay NFL players before. 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.

THERE HAVE BEEN 11 KNOWN GAY PLAYERS NFL HISTORY

“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.

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

The subject was the impact of Carl Nassib g out as gay the NFL for the Las Vegas Rairs. Matea offensive leman Jake Strer, who is gay, is one of five current or former LGBTQ athlet profiled. “When I returned to football my sophomore year after g out was bee I knew that if I qu football was jt the begng of thgs I would qu or hold myself back om bee I was gay, ” Strer told Outsports.

“To fast forward to my last football game my senr year and have end wh ‘NFL 360’ there to clu me a story celebratg the first openly gay football player NFL history is still really unbelievable to me.

EST, we see scen of Strer’s last game as a Matea Mtang, terspersed wh him speakg about beg gay football and what Nassib’s g out meant to him. Their experienc are universal, ways good and bad, for many LGBTQ people — Pick talkg about the pa om the ial rejectn by her mom; O’Callaghan discsg suicidal thoughts before beg rcued by a therapist; Rapoport’s touchg rellectn of g out to NFL Commissner Roger Gooll by approachg him at a Super Bowl event holdg her girliend’s hand and Gooll’s se upon seeg ; Saffold discsg growg up Black and gay on the South Si of Chigo “where there are rampant levels of homophobia” and Strer on how he ed to worry “about how bad my life might be after I me out.

THREE GAY FOOTBALL PLAYERS FEATURED NFL NETWORK SEGMENT ON CARL NASSIB

“I thk 11- or 12-year-old kids playg football prr to Carl Nassib g out didn’t thk there uld be a gay football player, ” Rapoport said. 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.

So we set out to figure out how many current NFL players have already played on the same team wh an out gay teammate.

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

We found 39 current NFL players, who were on a roster for the 2020 season, who have already had an out gay teammate. In addn, dozens of other players have played agast an opponent they knew to be gay. Those gay athlet are all still alive today.

The 39 current NFL players have played wh at least five gay or bisexual men who were out to their team while they were on the same team. The Arizona Cardals have the most players we know have played wh an out gay teammate. At least six of the players on the Cardals’ 2020 roster — about 10% of the team, — has already had a gay teammate they knew of.

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

And they have llectively played llege wh all five out gay players.

Wh that experience, solid veteran learship, a ach Kliff Kgsbury who has ld gay football player Stt Frantz, and a ont office that has monstrated an embrace of LGBTQ people, is easy to make the se that an out gay player wh the Cardals would be weled.

Of urse many other NFL players have played wh a gay or bi teammate before they me out (e. The are the current NFL players to have played wh an out gay or bi man on their team (wh that team and their current team listed):. If you thk I’ve missed a current NFL player who’s played wh an out gay or bi teammate, be sure to leave the rmatn the ments below.

CARL NASSIB OF LAS VEGAS RAIRS ANNOUNC HE IS GAY, PLEDG $100,000 TO TREVOR PROJECT

Otherwise, we create a pattern of celebratg an athlete’s bravery while also cuttg their reer off at the exampl offer utnary Michael Sam told the world he was gay, he was drafted the seventh round 2014, the lowt pick of any SEC fensive player of the year.

Dpe reachg out several tim, I haven’t spoken to my sports agent aga to this 2021, Carl beme the first NFL player on an active roster to e out as gay.

CARL NASSIB BE FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER TO PLAY NFL GAME

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTRairs’ Carl Nassib Announc He’s Gay, an N. FirstThe Rairs fensive leman me out a statement posted to his Instagram acunt on Monday, beg the first active player the league to publicly intify as gay.

ViotranscripttranscriptCarl Nassib Be First Openly Gay Active N. I jt want to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay.

Player to publicly clare that he is gay.

CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY N.F.L. PLAYER, HAS BEEN A FOOTBALL EVERYMAN

“I jt want to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay, ” Nassib said a vio posted to his Instagram acunt. I actually hope that like one day vios like this and the whole g-out procs are jt not necsary, but until then I’m gog to do my bt and my part to cultivate a culture that’s acceptg, that’s passnate, ” before addg that he would donate $100, 000 to The Trevor Project, a nonprof group that foc on suici preventn efforts among lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer and qutng youth. L., and mak him the first openly gay active player the league’s 101-year history.

“Sports are, many ways, one of the last bastns of a place where homophobia n thrive, ” said Cathy Renna, a spokwoman for the Natnal L. ”Michael Sam, an all-Amerin fensive leman at Missouri, had been viewed as the most likely to acquire that distctn when he announced he is gay before he beg chosen by the Rams the seventh round of the 2014 N.

The Dallas Cowboys signed Sam to their practice squad, but he never played a regular season Otero/Associated PrsSam’s draft stat was seen as a barometer of whether the climate of men’s pro sports was beg more acceptg of gay athlet, particularly bee Febary 2014 the N.

CARL NASSIB, FIRST OPENLY GAY NFL PLAYER, TO BE RELEASED BY RAIRS

Had jt bee the first of the four tradnal major Amerin men’s sports leagu to have an openly gay active player when Jason Colls joed the Sam left the N. Players had prevly announced publicly that they were gay, but all after their playg reers were over. David Kopay beme the first pro football player to publicly e out as gay 1975, three years after he retired.

He played for ne seasons wh the San Francis 49ers and four other teams the 1960s and 1970s, and has sce bee an activist and an ambassador for the Gay Gam, a quadrennial sportg Simmons was the send former player to announce that he was gay, dog so 1992 after his reer wh the Giants and Washgton Football Team had end. Simmons also said he never would have clared himself gay durg the four seasons he played for the N. ”In recent years, the league has publicly supported Pri Month through promotnal efforts like changg official social media avatars to clu rabows and supportg the You Can Play Project, which provis rourc to enurage clivy youth sports, even as some players have ma rogatory statements about gay people wh ltle penalty or supported groups that oppose gay Wewerka for The New York TimIn 2013, Chris Culliver of the San Francis 49ers and Chris Clemons of the Seattle Seahawks ma offensive ments when asked about the prospect of havg a gay teammate.

CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY ACTIVE NFL PLAYER, ULD BE TURNG POT FOR MALE SPORTS

“Got no gay people on the team, ” Culliver said. ”San Francis nng back Garrison Hearst apologized 2002 for g a slur and sayg he wouldn’t want a gay player as a teammate. His ment me after the former Mnota Vikgs player Esera Tuaolo publicly me out as gay that year after he had retired.

Players like Brendon Ayanbajo, who played wh the Baltimore Ravens, fend same-sex marriage and gay rights and supported Sam at the time. Player to Announce He’s Gay.

7 GAY NFL FOOTBALL PLAYERS

I jt want to take a quick moment to say that I'm gay. He me to natnal attentn as a star of the Browns' "Hard Knocks" appearance 2018, givg fancial advice to teammat and offerg his take on the existence of Missouri lebacker Michael Sam beme the first openly gay player to be drafted NFL history 2014, when the Rams took him 249th overall.

Carl Nassib on Monday beme the first active NFL player to e out as gay.

Carl Nassib has ma history as the first active NFL player to announce that he is gay. Sam beme a trailblazer as the first openly gay athlete to be drafted by the NFL 2014.