Michael Sam could very well still be playing in the National Football League had he not come out as gay, the former St. Louis Ram told sportscaster Dan Patrick on Friday.
Advertisement
For now, Sam is going to live in his college town of Columbia, Mo., where he’ll work toward his master’s degree and continue to work out.
Talking to Dan Patrick earlier today, Sam told the longtime broadcaster on whether or not he’d be in the world’s top league had he not publicly revealed he was gay “I’m not going to say… but it probably would have been better for me if I didn’t come out, I would be on a roster”.
“It’s been a roller coaster”, Sam told ABC 17. “I’ve been trying to figure out what’s next in the next part of my life. I’ve just come to a conclusion, as I take this break from football, I want to focus on my media training to try to get into broadcasting and commentating”. “It was just supposed to be to the team, as I did at the University of Missouri”.
He’s also fired his agent and publicist. He then signed with the Montreal Alouettes, but quit the team in August citing his mental health.
He continued to speak about his troubles in the CFL and how it wasn’t helping him.
Taking a break from football “was one of the smartest things I’ve done in a long time”, he said.
“I’ll try to pursue my National Football League career”, Sam said. I left with some personal issues the first time. Sam eventually tried a brief stint with the Montreal Alouettes, but said that he felt the experience wasn’t making him better, and was distracting him from joining the NFL. “So I kind of wanted to wet my feet a little bit and see if this could be a career of mine in the future”.
Advertisement
Sam, who called himself “a damn good” football player, said he still wants to play in the NFL and is training for that opportunity.
