NFL not ready for gay players

There's an interesting story over at Bleacher Report. Apparently one NFL team was about to sign a gay free agent to a deal, after which the player would come out as gay. Didn't happen. The article is about why this is the case, and when and if the situation will ever change. There are some interesting statements along the way.

Estimates of how many gay players are in the NFL range widely, but some of them, from people intimately familiar with the league, are far higher than might be assumed by the outside public.

Players and team executives give totals ranging from several dozen to several hundred. (There are about 2,000 players in the league.) One former general manager said he believes the number of gay players is 30-40. [My bolding.]

I'm surprised by the number this former manager came up with. That would mean it's not unusual for a gay player to be a member of an NFL team. Who knows? Maybe it's true. I've certainly known my share of butch gay guys who could pass for straight in any environment.

The other possibility is a high-profile player in college is openly gay and has discussed this in media interviews for years. By the time he's picked high in the NFL draft, his sexuality has been so discussed and analyzed that no one cares. And that is the goal. Reach a day when no one will care.

We'll care. I promise. But it'll be a good "care". The fans I'm not so sure about but such a player would get worlds of support from the American public. But we may never find out because the teams (the owners, actually) are too bigoted frightened.

So after lots of talk of a gay NFL player coming out, the talk disappeared. Because NFL teams, in the end, got cold feet. It's that simple.

 Bigotry always is.

First openly gay college basketball player

John Aravosis has a nice story at AmericaBlog about the first openly gay player in college men's basketball. And he's an ex-Mormon and it's a Catholic college. Very cool in all directions. Check it out.

Gay NFL player to come out

There's a good story at CNN about this. It seems homophobia has had its day in professional sports, and a new era is coming. Dang, you can't even call a sports show to share your anti-gay feelings anymore!

A few weeks ago I heard a caller on local sports talk radio—I know, not always the bastion of level-headedness—tell the host he hopes no player comes out because he, the caller, didn't want to have to deal with it.

He didn't want to have to explain what that meant to his family, or deal with the issue of that gay player, perhaps, being on a team for which he likes to cheer. He was, pardon the expression, undressed by the host, pilloried for his antiquated viewpoints and lampooned for even daring to make someone else's struggle with their hidden sexuality about them.

You have to remember, this is a story at CNN rather than at a gay site. I think it would great if a popular, talented football player came out (and of course, I wonder who they're talking about). From the story, I take it the team is fine with him being gay. He's worried about the reaction of fans -- and that's understandable. No matter how well things are going for gay people, there are still a lot of people out there who hate us. Still, the time seems right. I hope he finds the courage to come out.

I'm mostly a baseball fan and I often find myself hoping that a baseball player will come out. We aren't going away, and that's a fact. Soon we'll be everywhere, openly. That's so great and it'll help young gay kids to feel better about themselves. Enough with the homophobia. It's a new day.