There are 100s actually 1000s of football players who are cut before and during the season. It isn’t an unusual thing. Some of those players have the talent to play in the NFL, but there are only so many spots on the team. Most of those players don’t have an outlet to campaign for another shot, but Michael Sam does. The reason is because he is gay. If he truly just wanted to be a football player, he would decline these opportunities to remind you that he is in fact gay (while saying he just wants to be known as a football player). Instead of doing that he subtly plants seeds that he should get the opportunities because of that, which is the opposite of seeking equality. SI gave Sam another outlet to tell his story.
Deciding to publicly come out is a major moment in every gay person’s life, and nobody wants to be outed. So the reason I came out in the public way I did, in a nationally televised interview, was to ensure that I would again have a chance to tell my story on my own terms.
I don’t think I was prepared, nor could I possibly have been, for what happened next. So many people called me courageous, and some even called me a hero, while others told me that my announcement had given them inspiration and even helped them in their personal journeys. For the record, I don’t consider myself a hero or courageous. I was just being true to myself, but if that was enough to help some people through a difficult time in their lives, then I am very grateful to have been able to do so.
My personal journey over the last year has been filled with ups and downs, steps forward and back, but at this time there was one thing that was very clear in my mind:
I was just ready to play football.
Sam was never a HERO in my mind. It was his decision to come out and no one forced him to do it. I think all people should be comfortable with who they are, but if they choose to be private or public I will respect that. The central parts of wanting to be treated as an equal is not being discriminated against, but on the flip side of that you can not expect preferential treatment. This is something Sam has received from the media since he decided to come out. He has been giving opportunities that other players have not and he still doesn’t seem to understand or chooses to ignore that fact. I don’t begrudge him for taking the opportunities, but it work both ways. You can’t pick and choose when being treated as an equal when it is only convenient for you and your narrative.
I can’t say 100% why Michael Sam didn’t make a roster this year, but I can say that if he wants to be treated like just a football player, he should stop continually reminding people he is a gay one.
