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.
bigoted frightened.
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
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.
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