After an excruciating three day wait to find out his fate, Michael Sam – former Mizzou Tigers defensive end, consensus All-American, 2013 SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and also an openly gay man – was taken in the seventh round of the NFL Draft, pick 249 overall, by the St Louis Rams. And, in doing so, became the first openly gay player to be drafted by an American professional football organisation.
The 249th pick, the 8th last in the three day long draft process, now faces an uphill battle in order to make it on to the Rams roster and become a full-time professional football player. Being drafted in the NFL isn’t necessarily a guarantee of becoming a pro player, and all draftees, along with any free agents the team signs, must fight for spots during the spring training period.
There were emotional scenes at Sam’s home as he finally learned that he’d been drafted, with tears flowing, family congratulating him, and then this beyond cute scene where he embraced and kissed his boyfriend on live national TV, as ESPN presented rolling coverage over the course of draft weekend.
Though sadly, and not unexpectedly, not everyone was chuffed on this in the God-fearing depths of the U-S-of-A. Former pro running back Derrick Ward, who won a SuperBowl with the New York Giants, took to Twitter to vent his sheer disgust at the audacity of Sam for kissing someone he loves.
I’m sorry but that Michael Sam is no bueno for doing that on national tv. I’m fine with it being a new day in age but for him to do that on
— Derrick Ward (@derrickward32) May 10, 2014
National tv is disgusting. Gay or not.
— Derrick Ward (@derrickward32) May 10, 2014
Man U got little kids lookin at the draft. I can’t believe ESPN even allowed that to happen.
— Derrick Ward (@derrickward32) May 10, 2014
But for real though most of u need to read the bible. It’ll explain a lot in that book. #knowledge
— Derrick Ward (@derrickward32) May 11, 2014
Again, what he was objecting to was this.
Sports capacity to lead in cultural acceptance is unparalleled. It is a universal language that brings people from all walks of life together harmoniously, and has positive effects that can influence how we treat people in every day life. But, sadly, it’s attitudes such as the one above that provide the main reason why it’s taken until TWO THOUSAND AND FUCKING FOURTEEN for something like this to happen. The story of Michael Sam is extremely heartwarming. It is good for the game, and it is good for a progressive, inclusive, harmonious society. We all hope and wish for the day where this isn’t an anomaly; where everyone is welcome into sport and are judged solely by their performances and abilities. And this story is a perfect example of how hard it is to take one giant step forward, and how easy it is to leap one step back.
Photo: Joe Robbins via Getty Images
