by Kirby Boehm
Michael Sam out of Missouri has the potential to become the first openly gay athlete in the NFL. Sam was the 2013 SEC defensive player of the year and hopes to be selected in the NFL draft this upcoming may.
Shortly after Sam came out the news spread like wildfire across the national media outlets along with dominating the world of social media. Sam coming out immediately raised the question, is the NFL is “ready” for an openly gay player?
If and most likely when Sam is drafted the NFL will be the only member of the big four professional sports to have an openly gay athlete. A league defined by its violence, aggression and trash talking will open its doors to Sam.
After the Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin bullying debacle involving the Miami Dolphins some may worry on how Sam will be accepted into an NFL locker room. Wherever Sam is drafted a national news story will follow, dissecting the interactions between him and his teammates.
This may cause many GMs to be wary of drafting the Missouri All-American. They may grade him as being a fourth round pick, but drop him down the board because they worry about the distraction Sam will cause for the organization.
While society has become more accepting of people with a sexual-preference differing from the “norm”. Professional sports haven’t had to take a stance stating their opinion or beliefs on the subject matter.
It will be interesting to see if the NFL sends out a bulletin to teams summarizing what can be offensive to gay players and what actions players should avoid. On the other side the NFL could issue a statement supporting Sam while leaving Sam to deal with his teammates. Having him communicate to them what he has problems with and what he would like to see changed.
Sam excelled in the toughest conference in the country while leading his team to a historic season. This shows that he found a way to make sure that even though others may disagree with his lifestyle, the cohesiveness of the unit on the field wasn’t affected.
Whichever NFL team Sam goes to he will have go through this process again. Proving to a locker room full of testosterone that he is just another member of the team who is there to win just like they are.
Sam having to prove himself to his team is something that every rookie who enters the league must deal with. However instead of the media focusing on Sam’s football skill set and how he fits into different schemes, they focus on if he’ll be accepted because he is gay.
This overreaction by the media makes it seem like there is a major difference between Sam and the other players in the NFL. Just because Sam is gay doesn’t make him any less capable of thriving in the NFL.
Michael Sam is great football player whose main focus is to accomplish his lifelong dream of playing in the NFL, not field questions about his sexual orientation.
Hopefully in the near future it won’t be breaking news on ESPN when a player comes out that they are gay. As society begins to accept the fact that professional athletes can be gay too, the extreme coverage and discussion will fade.
From the viewpoint of a fan if Michael Sam has the ability to bring a Lombardi trophy to my team, than I want him on my team it’s that simple. Sam is no different than any other football player lining up every Sunday, he wants to be successful and help his team win.
Sam will always be labeled as the first openly gay athlete in the NFL, but over time I hope we allow him to focus on being a professional football player. Making it in the NFL is difficult enough without the added pressure of carrying the flag for other gay athletes.
kboehm789@capital.edu
