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Missouri DE, Michael Sam announces he's gay.


keggerz
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It will be interesting to see where he goes. I think he could have been better off waiting post-draft for this little media gem. The downside he probably brings at least for the summer is that I would expect a lot of media coverage of this and a distraction to the team. And the players now will have to be asked what they think about getting a gay player instead of waiting and letting it be a much bigger non-issue for a guy already on the team and a part of the group. I think this is probably nothing that notable in the long-run really but I will be shocked if the media doesn't actually work against him by causing a distraction and god forbid if one of his team mates who has never met him says something the media can blow up.

 

Hopefully this doesn't end up being "the" media focus of the summer like years past with Vicks dog fighting, Hernandez shooting someone, etc. There is so much studio time and so many talking heads that they just beat stuff to death.

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It will be interesting to see where he goes. I think he could have been better off waiting post-draft for this little media gem. The downside he probably brings at least for the summer is that I would expect a lot of media coverage of this and a distraction to the team. And the players now will have to be asked what they think about getting a gay player instead of waiting and letting it be a much bigger non-issue for a guy already on the team and a part of the group. I think this is probably nothing that notable in the long-run really but I will be shocked if the media doesn't actually work against him by causing a distraction and god forbid if one of his team mates who has never met him says something the media can blow up.

 

Hopefully this doesn't end up being "the" media focus of the summer like years past with Vicks dog fighting, Hernandez shooting someone, etc. There is so much studio time and so many talking heads that they just beat stuff to death.

 

 

I think it would've been a big issue post draft as well. The news was going to come out anyway. I think teams were digging into his situation a bit and would've found out. The downside is he will probably drop a bit as dealing with the distraction is a factor and some teams are probably not ready for that. The positive is that he has a better chance to go to an organization that will be better prepared, such as Seattle or New England, maybe.

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Does anyone think he could go undrafted? What a honda storm that would be in the media

 

When you are projected as a 4th-7th rounder I don't think it would be surprising if you went undrafted, and that was what he was being projected as prior to coming out.

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When you are projected as a 4th-7th rounder I don't think it would be surprising if you went undrafted, and that was what he was being projected as prior to coming out.

 

The projections i saw were 3rd or 4th round. I don't follow college football so really have no clue, but from what i've read it would have been surprising if he wasn't drafted prior to this news coming out.

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Gil Brandt is the absolute MAN when it comes to scouting, but I kind of disagree with him on this guy. Dude has a high motor and is always around the ball it seems (sorry, pun really not intended). The knock on him is he dominated against inferior competition and looked ordinary against the better SEC teams. I don't know, every time I watched him, it was evident he was the heart and soul of an underrated Mizzou defense.

 

He may be a tweener, but he can definitely help a defense. Watch him go to the Patriots in the 5th or 6th. He'll operate as a situational guy to start out, but could really thrive in the right defensive scheme. Two words: Rob Ninkovich. Who the hell was this guy before he played a couple of seasons for Bill Belichick?

 

And finally, on-topic: those of you that think his draft stock won't be affected by this need to pull your head out of the sand.

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I could care less if he's gay. Can he play football? I have heard the reports that he's a tweener - too small for DE, too big for LB, and that he piled up most of his stats against inferior teams. He kind of reminds me of Chris Clemons as far as his height/weight and motor go. Seattle traded for him to play the Leo position in Carroll's defense and he thrived. With Seattle's being a little lot more laid back than most cultures, if he was still undrafted late I could see the Seahawks taking him and making him yet another late round star.

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Agree with DMD, and would add that whoever drafts him should also invest in sensitivity training to head off any issues. Teams probably do this on some scale, but there will be additional scrutiny in this case. As we saw with the Incognito/Martin situation, all it takes is one off color remark from a teammate, regardless of the intent, to cause an apoplectic reaction in the media. An ounce of prevention would be worth a pound of cure in this case.

 

On the other hand, Sam's coming out could head a lot of this off, since his teammates know where he stands. So, probably better for him and his future team that this is in the open sooner rather than later.

 

/and holy cow you can BARELY add a comment here using IE. Damn.

Edited by CowboysDiehard
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And finally, on-topic: those of you that think his draft stock won't be affected by this need to pull your head out of the sand.

 

I agree that it is possible his stock could be impacted with some organizations, but not to the point of him going undrafted and certainly not to the point where teams avoid him all together (unless he bombs at the combine/pro-day). It's not like he'll be the first gay man to play football, as it's a possibility that every team in the NFL has a gay player on their team all ready (and I promise you many of their teamates all ready know). He just happens to be the first openly gay player. So for a few teams I think they'll possibly drop him down their board, but I'd guess the majority of teams won't allow this news to impact his draft status in any way. They will judge him based on if they think he makes them a better football team. I believe his stock will rise or fall based more off what he does at the combine than his coming out. If he kills it at the combine he'll be drafted no later than the 4th round by someone.
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Gil Brandt is the absolute MAN when it comes to scouting, but I kind of disagree with him on this guy. Dude has a high motor and is always around the ball it seems (sorry, pun really not intended). The knock on him is he dominated against inferior competition and looked ordinary against the better SEC teams. I don't know, every time I watched him, it was evident he was the heart and soul of an underrated Mizzou defense.

 

He may be a tweener, but he can definitely help a defense. Watch him go to the Patriots in the 5th or 6th. He'll operate as a situational guy to start out, but could really thrive in the right defensive scheme. Two words: Rob Ninkovich. Who the hell was this guy before he played a couple of seasons for Bill Belichick?

 

And finally, on-topic: those of you that think his draft stock won't be affected by this need to pull your head out of the sand.

 

 

Exactly. You need look no further than Tebow to see that teams won't even be willing to take a chance on a guy with questionable skills if it brings a circus like that. No its not fair, but you can blame the media for that (plus the supporters will make it hell if they cut him later)

 

Haven't seen much of his play, but the talk reminds me a lot of my friends little brother Chase Thomas, who I see a lot of similarities with (aside from the openly gay part). Chase was the undeniable heart and soul of the Stanford defense, made lots of big plays and was considered a 3rd/4th round pick by most analysts. He was also a tweener, so ended up going undrafted, and has gone around to multiple teams in his first year that he can't seem to stick with.

 

Not trying to draw a direct comparison, but the situation seems similar, but probably even worse for this kid, as teams will be even less willing to give him a shot, with all the drama it will bring if he doesn't work out.

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Exactly. You need look no further than Tebow to see that teams won't even be willing to take a chance on a guy with questionable skills if it brings a circus like that. No its not fair, but you can blame the media for that (plus the supporters will make it hell if they cut him later)

 

Haven't seen much of his play, but the talk reminds me a lot of my friends little brother Chase Thomas, who I see a lot of similarities with (aside from the openly gay part). Chase was the undeniable heart and soul of the Stanford defense, made lots of big plays and was considered a 3rd/4th round pick by most analysts. He was also a tweener, so ended up going undrafted, and has gone around to multiple teams in his first year that he can't seem to stick with.

 

Not trying to draw a direct comparison, but the situation seems similar, but probably even worse for this kid, as teams will be even less willing to give him a shot, with all the drama it will bring if he doesn't work out.

 

To be fair, Tebow was a 1st round draft pick and no one is even contemplating drafting Sam in the first round. Of course most would have argued that Tebow was a 4th round talent at a position that didn't involve him being under center, Still one of the biggest head scratchers in modern draft history. Not only did they draft him in round one to play a position he wasn't suited for, but they gave up a lot to get him.

 

For Sam, he simply doesn't have the body to be that high of a pick. That being said the vast majority of NFL teams will consider his sexual orientation to be a non-issue as this is NOT a character issue like someone with a criminal past (and how much that criminal past accounts for all depends on what position you play). They only care if he is a better player than the other guy on their draft board, and it is as simple as that. That is why his combine and pro-day numbers are going to be so important to him. He's undersized and incapable of filling out enough to be an every down DE and there are serious questions as to if he can play in space to be moved to an outside LB. Right now he looks like he might find a niche as a pass rush specialist on 3rd downs. If that is what you bring to the table you are not going to be higher than the middle rounds and you'll still need to prove that you deserve to be a middle round pick at the combine.

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Everything I read the day after (la times is one I definitely remember) said he was projected as mid first.

Doesn't appear that's the case though now if he gets drafted in 4th they will say he fell because he he is gay

 

 

Are you sure about that? Everything I read said mid to late rounds.

Edited by Bobby Brown
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Everything I read the day after (la times is one I definitely remember) said he was projected as mid first.

Doesn't appear that's the case though now if he gets drafted in 4th they will say he fell because he he is gay

 

 

You sure the "first" you were seeing was "FIRST openly gay player"? Cuz that's the only "first" that should be associated with Sam.

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Very old reports could have. Taj Boyd and Aaron Lynch were on Kiper's post-2013 draft "look ahead to 2014" list as first rounders. Now those guys are nowhere to be seen. And for a long time, Sam was listed higher than Ealy by Scouts Inc. Highest grades I recall seeing for Sam were 2nd roundish, but it's very possible they were at one time higher.

 

Kiper listing Sam as his #2 senior DE in November, for example:

http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/draft2014/story/_/id/10001365/2014-nfl-draft-mel-kiper-updates-list-top-nfl-prospects-every-position#DEs

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Very old reports could have. Taj Boyd and Aaron Lynch were on Kiper's post-2013 draft "look ahead to 2014" list as first rounders. Now those guys are nowhere to be seen. And for a long time, Sam was listed higher than Ealy by Scouts Inc. Highest grades I recall seeing for Sam were 2nd roundish, but it's very possible they were at one time higher.

 

Kiper listing Sam as his #2 senior DE in November, for example:

http://insider.espn....ry-position#DEs

 

Mel Kiper is considered a joke by real scouts. He is incapable of really evaluating players and simply uses information gathered by others to make his lists. If anyone thought Sam was ever higher than a mid-round draft pick they are clueless as to what the NFL is looking for. He was an excellent college player, but that does not mean he'll make it in the NFL. I still think he'll get drafted as an edge pass rush specialist sometime after the 3rd round. After that the only thing that will matter to whichever team has him is if he can help them win football games or not. If they feel he can't he'll be on the street and it will have nothing to do with him being gay, but instead with him not being a NFL caliber player. Edited by sausagekingchi
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