Michael Sam may in fact be the most notorious and high-profile practice squad member in the history of the NFL. The Dallas Cowboys signed the former St. Louis Rams seventh round draft pick to the team’s practice squad earlier today, and since then everyone is discussing and giving their two cents as to what this means for Sam and the Cowboys.
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Emmitt Smith, the former Dallas Cowboy, Hall of Famer, and the NFL’s all time leading rusher, recently discussed the Cowboys signing Sam on the NFL Network this morning.
“Obviously if you haven’t been watching our Dallas Cowboys this preseason and our defense, our defense has struggled big time,” Smith said candidly. “I think this is the best opportunity for Michael Sam to step in and help a team that is in desperate need of help on the defensive side of the ball. It could work out nicely for him.”
While Smith knows that a lot of media will be giving the Cowboys attention for signing the NFL’s first openly gay player, Smith knows that the signing is based on Sam’s ability solely.
“I honestly believe that there will be a lot of attention around this whole situation all because it is the Dallas Cowboys making that decision,” Smith continued. “But at the end of the day, I think the players are truly more focused on whether or not this guy can come in and help them win games. That’s just the bottom line. As far as the culture goes, Texas is a little bit conservative so at the end of the day you may get a little bit of this, a little bit of that. But that’s the way life is. For Michael Sam, he’s just looking for an opportunity to get on the football field and this right here provides him the best opportunity to do that.”