The Reformed Advisor

What? Michael Sam Was Cut by the Rams? But…He’s Gay!

Posted on September 5, 2014 in Sexuality by

Michael SamDid you hear the latest excitement from the NFL? No, not that opening day is coming or the new rules that no one likes. I’m talking about the fact that the first openly gay NFL draft choice, Michael Sam, was cut by the St. Louis Rams.

A few months ago Sam made all sorts of headlines for being the first openly gay player to enter the NFL draft. In fact, that’s all anyone could talk about. They talked about his sexuality even more than his on-field accomplishments or his future potential as a NFL player. Some dared to discuss his talents and abilities, saying he was too small and slow for his position and would not make it in the NFL. But they were quickly shamed into silence by everyone else that was elated over his sexuality.

This is the problem when a person’s sexuality becomes more important than anything about him or her. Even as LGBT activists argue that sexuality and sexual-orientation are private matters and no one’s business, they want to parade their sexuality in front of everyone as the singular accomplishment of their life.

Take for example Jason Collins. When this aging, mediocre pro basketball player saw his career declining and the fact that no one was interested in his services, he announced to the world that he was gay. Whoa! The first openly gay male professional athlete in the four major American sports. This is historic, this is monumental, this is…a calculated career move intended to drive up Jason Collins’ stock?

But where is Jason Collins today? According to a recent article by a gay publication he “isn’t sure” he wants to come back to the NBA next season. Even this liberal publication can’t hide the fact that NBA teams aren’t beating down Collins’ door to sign him. Why is that? Doesn’t the NBA know that Collins is a historic figure? Don’t they know how “courageous” and “brave” he is for being the first openly gay player in a major American sport?

Oh, that’s right, they don’t care. The NBA and its teams care about winning championships. They don’t care if players are white, black, Latino, gay, straight, or otherwise. What they really care about is whether or not a player can help them win a championship.

Michael Sam is now learning the reality of this truth. When he was drafted in the last round by the last team in the NFL everyone cheered. Yeah, the first openly gay player in the NFL draft has been chosen. Cooler heads reminded us all that he hadn’t even made the team yet so let’s save the celebration. But LGBT activists only cared that he was drafted and “just knew” that he would make the team.

But, funny thing about NFL teams, they are a lot like NBA teams, they care more about winning Super Bowls than championing liberal social causes. Michael Sam might want to look into the PR field because obviously he is brilliant at creating a media frenzy where nothing should exist. And while the St. Louis Rams decided to give him a chance, in the end, as many predicted, he simply wasn’t good enough.

But one has to wonder, and I certainly did when I saw the news Saturday that Sam had been cut. How long before someone says Sam was cut due to discrimination? How long before someone is willing to jump the shark into the absurd and declare that it had nothing to do with his lack of ability but was in fact all because Sam is gay?

I thought it might take a week before anyone made that assertion. I was wrong.

By Sunday night an article at NBCSports.com made it perfectly clear that Michael Sam is not even on a practice squad because he is gay. Not because teams are homophobic, no, of course not. But because teams don’t want the distraction!

Whoa, wait a minute. I seem to recall someone else making this very same statement just a few weeks ago and getting absolutely hammered in the media for it. Tony Dungy said he would not have drafted Sam because of the media circus and distraction his very open sexuality would cause. He was obliterated by people for daring to be honest enough to make that statements.

And yet, when Buffalo Bills center Eric Wood makes the same statement and then it’s posted in an article no one seems to care. Why is that? Could it be that Tony Dungy was right? Could it be that Michael Sam is not really good enough to make an NFL team so he paraded his sexuality out for everyone to see in order to coerce teams into doing the politically correct thing and draft him?

This is the problem with making sexuality the most important thing about a person. It’s no different than affirmative action laws. Whether we’re talking about skin color or sexuality when something other than a person’s merits – skill, talent, results, aptitude – are made the determining factor of whether or not that person gets a job, it’s wrong. Not only is it unfair to those with greater qualifications, it is demeaning to the person being offered a job for something other than his or her own merits and qualifications.

Michael Sam decided to take a calculated risk and reveal his sexual orientation. Only he knows if it was a PR stunt or not. But it worked, it got him drafted when no one was really talking about him. The result is that a mediocre player without much chance of seeing the NFL was given a chance. He wasn’t good enough. On top of it, the truth is now coming out that NFL teams don’t want distractions in their locker rooms (Just ask Terrell Owens). Sams’ sexuality got him drafted but it couldn’t keep him in the NFL. The new affirmative action laws demanding that LGBT people be hired regardless of their qualifications, have proven once again that sexuality is the worst determining factor for a person regarding a job.

Is there any chance this experience will teach us to stop looking at non-essential factors such as sexuality and skin color when making decisions about employment? That remains to be seen. In the meantime, there is a n ex-NBA and wanna-be NFL player looking for PR work. Anyone?

Archives

↑ Back To Top ↑
%d bloggers like this: