Michael Sam says he is gay; could become first openly gay NFL player

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>I want to thank everybody for their support and encouragement,especially <a href="https://twitter.com/espn">@espn</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/nytimes">@nytimes</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/nfl">@nfl</a>. I am proud to tell my story to the world!</p>&mdash; Michael Sam (@MikeSamFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeSamFootball/statuses/432680996203270144">February 10, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Want to give an additional thanks to my supportive family and team <a href="https://twitter.com/HowardBragman">@HowardBragman</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/EmpireAthletes">@EmpireAthletes</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/camRONweiss">@camRONweiss</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBarkett">@JoeBarkett</a></p>&mdash; Michael Sam (@MikeSamFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeSamFootball/statuses/432685679479230464">February 10, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Breaking News: Michael Sam, one of college football's top players and a likely N.F.L draft pick, says he is gay <a href="http://t.co/uFr1d9CBVy">http://t.co/uFr1d9CBVy</a></p>&mdash; The New York Times (@nytimes) <a href="https://twitter.com/nytimes/statuses/432680546091958273">February 10, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>The NFL's statement on NFL Draft Prospect Michael Sam announcing he's gay. &gt;&gt; <a href="http://t.co/Mnz412VCnp">pic.twitter.com/Mnz412VCnp</a></p>&mdash; NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNNFL/statuses/432683086933790720">February 10, 2014</a></blockquote>
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How will news that Michael Sam is gay affect NFL draft his stock?

Spoiler

The executives and coaches were granted anonymity by SI.com for their honesty and their answers were consistently unsparing.

"I don't think football is ready for it just yet," said an NFL player personnel assistant. "In the coming decade or two, it's going to be acceptable, but at this point in time it's still a man's man game. To call somebody a [gay slur] is still so commonplace. It'd chemically imbalance an NFL locker room and meeting room."

All the NFL personnel interviewed agreed that Sam's announcement will cause him to drop in the draft; he was projected between the third and seventh round prior to the announcement. The question will be how far he falls and if he gets chosen at all.

"I just know with this going on this is going to drop him down," said a veteran NFL scout. "There's no question about it. It's human nature. Do you want to be the team to quote-unquote 'break that barrier?'"

Before his announcement, Sam had already emerged as a divisive prospect. Some look at his SEC-best 11.5 sacks and 19 tackles for loss and see a high motor pass rusher who could have gone as high as the third round. Others see Sam, who is 6-foot-2 and 260 pounds, as undersized defensive end without a true position in the NFL. Of his 11.5 sacks, nine came in three games against what one scout called "garbage competition" -- Vanderbilt, Arkansas State and Florida. "His numbers are inflated," a scout said. "You've got to see through that."

One former NFL general manager described how Sam's future could play out in the draft room. He said when a team is getting in position to make a pick, there's typically a declaration in the draft room that they're nine slots from choosing and will pick from six different players, or five spots away and choose from three players.

If Sam is among that group of players, the potential distraction of his presence -- both in the media and the locker room -- could prevent him from being selected.

"That will break a tie against that player," he said. "Every time. Unless he's Superman. Why? Not that they're against gay people. It's more that some players are going to look at you upside down. Every Tom, Dick and Harry in the media is going to show up, from Good Housekeeping to the Today Show. A general manager is going to ask, 'Why are we going to do that to ourselves?'"

The former general manager said that it would take an NFL franchise with a strong owner, savvy general manager and veteran coach to make it work. He rattled off franchises like Pittsburgh, Green Bay, San Francisco, Baltimore and Indianapolis as destinations where that could happen. He said that a team with a rookie head coach would not be an ideal destination. "This plays better in Green Bay," he said, "that it does in New York."

Sam's announcement did not come as a surprise to most NFL teams. Sam's sexual orientation was considered an open secret in his college town of Columbia, Mo., and the assistant personnel man said he believed "90-percent of teams" had already known about that Sam was gay and had dropped him on their draft boards. He estimated that of the 32 NFL franchises, only two or three didn't know prior the news. He projected that it will impact Sam's draft status "quite a bit."

"You're going to have to have one confident general manager or head coach that is certainly entrenched in his position and established to draft a player like that," the assistant personnel director said. "It's one thing to have Chris Kluwe or Brendon Ayanbadejo, advocates for gay rights, on your team. It's another to have a current confirmed player."

Multiple NFL executives questioned the decision to come out now, as Sam will be the biggest story in football between now and the NFL Draft on May 8. The NFL combine from Feb. 22-25 will be a four-day referendum on Sam's professional future. And his place in the NFL Draft will be endlessly debated between now and May.

An NFL assistant coach called Sam's decision "not a smart move," as he said it "legitimately affects your potential earnings." It wasn't lost on the NFL executives that former NBA player Jason Collins, who came out last April in a Sports Illustrated story, hasn't been signed by an NBA team this year.

"You shouldn't have to live your life in secrecy," the assistant coach said, "but do you really want to be the top of the conversation for everything without ever having played a down in this league?"

The assistant coach said that the decision to draft Sam will ultimately rest on the desire of a franchise to risk disrupting the dynamic of the locker room.

"There are guys in locker rooms that maturity-wise cannot handle it or deal with the thought of that," the assistant coach said. "There's nothing more sensitive than the heartbeat of the locker room. If you knowingly bring someone in there with that sexual orientation, how are the other guys going to deal with it? It's going to be a big distraction. That's the reality. It shouldn't be, but it will be."​