Michael Sam Says He Is Gay; May Become First Publicly Gay Player in N.F.L.

It's the marijuana smokers who are truly brave:

 

So, Sam will face some sideways looks if for no other reason than there are black God squadders in NFL locker rooms, and black God squadders are probably among the least accepting people of homosexuality, as a demographic.

The question I ponder is this: Is it really a huge issue, or is their moral opposition akin to, say, a teetotaler morally disapproving when guys go out for a few coldies? Can't you live with that among co-workers? I get, of course, that sexual orientation is a lot more intertwined with who someone is, but I think a lot of gay people - and Michael Sam sounds like he's among them - consider it just part of their identity, not the whole kit and kaboodle.

 

Great point, Dick. What I was trying to say is that the media will make it a bigger part of his identity...probably much bigger than Sam wants it to be. That will probably be one of the more unfortunate of the unintended consequences of his coming out.

 

In the 30 years we've been anticipating this "big moment" in sports it's been gradually defused by education, awareness and time. The media has played an enormous role in that public education. Looking back, the AIDS crisis accelerated the education process because it had such a disproportionate and profound affect on the gay community. The resulting discussion was a turning point.

 

Seems like there's probably a veteran NFL guy itching to come out right now to lend support to Sam.

And the whole undersized thing is ridiculous. All of a sudden the SEC Defensive Player of the Year isn't good enough to play in the NFL? Really? Did I read somewhere that the last 9 SEC DPOY winners went high in the draft?

I'd like to see a team have the balls enough to take him in the 1st round, a contender that doesn't need to rebuild and could use a hungry, strong speedster with everything to prove.

 

Have you seen him play, Xan?

 

There are Heisman winners who go undrafted.

There are consensus All-Americans who don't make a roster.

There are Biletnikoff winners who never catch a pass.

Michael Sam being projected to go in the middle to late rounds is, again, not unusual. If it were, then why didn't anyone notice before two nights ago that something was amiss?

 

I don't think anyone is questioning that he's good enough to make the NFL, but the undersized thing is probably the biggest reason why he won't go in the first three rounds.

 

Yeah, I watched Mizzou 3-4 times this season. Am I missing something?

He's a 6'2, 260-pounder with speed.

 

And it's completely legitimate.

Again: The guy was a two-star prospect coming out of high school who was recruited by four mid-level programs. This isn't the first time he has had to deal with a knock against him that has little to do with how much he enjoys house music.

 

No, I think that the primate evolutionary process had not yet delivered us the homo sapien species millions of years ago. Hence, the skepticism over it's part of human "society" considering that humans did not yet exist.

 

He's not 6-2. He's not 260.

He has forward speed. He hasn't show he can drop back in coverage.