It has been a groundbreaking week in sports. Michael Sam, 2013 Southeastern Conference (SEC) Player of the Year and 2014 National Football League (NFL) draft prospect, announced he is gay. The announcement took the sports world by storm. This announcement came with immense buzz, due to the fact that Sam broke the status quo and could be the first openly gay player in professional football.
Personally, I’m a firm believer in that people should be able to live their lives however they choose without the endangerment of themselves and others. Yet this decision may have come with a few consequences.
Once an athlete enters the brink of professional sports, it is no longer just fun and games. The game that they’ve grown to love, the game that has developed them as men or women, the game that has brought them pain as well as prosperity – enters as whole new realm. The competition level and the preparation time increases, the pressure increases, players are rewarded for their play with money and most of all the praises as well as criticisms increase.
The biggest questions that I’ve heard in regards about the announcement of Michael Sam’s sexual orientation are the following questions. “Why does it matter?” “Why is this news?” “Who cares if he’s gay?”
When the announcement surfaced, I faced these questions while trying to put myself in the minds of the NFL executives and coaching staffs that will ultimately decide the fate of Sam in the NFL. First, I did my research to see his potential based primarily on his on the field resume.
Sam, who played four years at the University of Missouri, enjoyed a pretty marginal career up until his senior season in which his became the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. That award alone though says a lot about his talent. Since 2003, eight of the last ten SEC defensive POY award winners have been drafted in the first round.
Sam recorded SEC best 11.5 sacks and 19 tackles for loss and those numbers would suggest Sam to be a dominant player with high motor and great pass-rushing skills. Scouts have downgraded his performance because nine of his sacks game in three games with so called “garbage competition.”
NFL scouts takes the “lack of competition” tag seriously, trust me.
Nonetheless, with the numbers and accolades to back his play the talent is obviously there. Next, I looked at his intangibles to see where he stacks up against current NFL trends at his position. Michael Sam is about six foot one and 260 pounds, which is not the prototypical size of a NFL defensive end. There are always exceptions to the standards, but players who don’t fit the mold have to make up for it with eye-popping numbers in speed, strength and quickness.
NFL scouts care about how player’s measurements match up because they have to be able to compare prospective players to other professionals at the position to project success.
Although Sam has shown the ability to have success despite his small stature for the position, those skills do not always translate well to the NFL. Sam will have to show some eye-popping skills and ability at the NFL scouting combine or his pro day. Most believe he will not, as the tape doesn’t show the potential to do so. Scouts will have to decide whether he can translate to an outside linebacker where his size fits the mold better.
The questions about Sam’s play have and will be considered in the months leading up to the draft. However, Michael’s decision to announce his sexual orientation to the world is a decision that will also be evaluated.
The NFL is a professional league. It’s a business, which means that football is more than just fun and games for its participants. The league is constantly under the eyes of media professionals and the subject of Sam’s sexuality is a topic that will never decease. If Sam becomes an NFL player, the organization that chooses him will have to answer to questions of his acceptance. A watchful eye will check if he is being treated fairly in the locker room. The organization will have to open its doors to the media circus that will come with having an openly gay player on the team.
This is why it matters that Michael Sam openly came forth with his sexual orientation.
For a player with a lot of questions about how his abilities will translate to the NFL, such a decision may come with a price. The barrier of an openly gay man in a “macho” sports world has never been done. It may have been smarter to wait or delay the announcement but I’m sure there are underlying reasons for the timing.
Whether or not Michael Sam is suiting up in a NFL uniform or not is up in the air at this point, but he has proven that the talent is there.
Although the only problem with that is talent can only get you so far.
