The St. Louis Rams stepped up to the plate to draft Missouri Tigers defensive end Michael Sam, who is trying to become the first openly gay player in NFL history. It was an uphill battle for Sam with the Rams, the NFL team in the state he played college ball and was beloved by fans.
The Rams were deep along the defensive line and it looked like a Herculean task to get a roster spot. Ultimately the Rams cut Sam and passed on signing him to their practice squad leaving Sam without a team.
Apparently teams are genuinely interested in Sam from a talent stand point, it is the media circus he could bring with him that is preventing teams from reaching out to him.
GM tells me: "Teams want to sign Michael Sam but fear the media attention."
— mike freeman (@mikefreemanNFL) September 1, 2014
To me, that's cowardice. But that's just me.
If there is one NFL owner who isn’t afraid of a little media attention and some polarizing figures, it is the owner that referred to his team as the “glitz and glamour” of the NFL, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
According to NFL media insider Ian Rapoport, the Cowboys are looking into signing Sam to their practice squad. The Cowboys are weak at the defensive line and carried 10 lineman on their 53 man roster. They struggled with injuries there and Sam could be called up if need be, or they could bring him in to take a longer look at him and hold on to him till next season potentially.
Source: #Cowboys are doing research and due diligence into the plan of signing DE Michael Sam to their practice squad.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 2, 2014
Cowboys plan to bring Michael Sam to Dallas for a physical Wednesday, per team source. If all goes well, Sam will be a Cowboy.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 2, 2014