ATL: Offseason

[Kerb Hohl]

In regard to the initial mention of him, I'm not incredibly interested in the documentary either. I am mostly interested in the football side of things myself but in it of that, it is impressive to me what he's done and also hopefully a signal that in 2-3 years once other guys start coming out, that we won't have to have this stupid argument anymore.

[Newz]

I'm honestly not calling you a bigot here at this point. It's more the fact that from the beginning of the thread, the magnitude of what he's going through/is doing might have been minimized. Maybe I'm not understanding your semantics correctly. I'm not sure exactly how you actually feel about it, nor do I necessarily care, I just think since the beginning of this, you had maybe been missing what the magnitude of this actually is.

In the beginning, you tried to point out that his sexuality is a private matter and not a big deal, when in fact in today's society, especially the NFL, it is a big deal to many people and also a very public matter (everything not having to do with sex). If we can agree on that, then I'm not overly concerned with the semantics of how it is understood.

It clearly is a big deal considering it is consuming media outlets, even though it should not be a big deal. I was in California for work over the weekend and my room didn't have Internet. I had ESPN, ESPN2 and NFL Network. It was Michael Sam stuff 90% of the time.

I get where you are coming from that you believe this is some big moment. That it is a defining moment and that it means a lot to gay people and their fight for equality. I think it is a pretty big moment for them too, but I think that the media and Sam are going about it all wrong. I am also starting to think that Sam is kind of a d-bag based on some of his comments... though I openly admitted my view may be schewed due to how much it is being broadcast. I don't think he's a d-bag because he's gay, I think he's a d-bag because he seems like a d-bag and a liar.

I also don't think it's wrong for Sam to want a documentary to be made about him if he wants to help people. I don't think it's wrong for him to give speeches and to try and make it easier for other gay people. He can certainly do that and it probably will help them.

I do think it's wrong and I do think less of him when he says he wants to be viewed as a football player and not a gay football player... then doesn't live up to what he said at all. If you want to be a symbol, a leader and an inspiration... then say so, don't hide behind "I just want to be viewed as a football player and not a gay football player". Also, if you are going to do it, be honest about it.

You are trying to convince other people of your sexual orientation to be open with their sexuality, to not hide it... and what is the first thing he does on the big stage? He HIDES that he is doing a documentary.

I also, like I said, don't think that the media is doing him any favors. They aren't treating him like he's everyone else. I get the coverage on him, but they are going way overboard. They aren't even treating him like he's a player... he's basically turned into a sideshow. Through all of their trying to make him the same as everyone else and get him accepted, they are making him as different as can be.

That's my view on it. I'll just restate it once more and if you think it's wrong or I'm uninformed then I don't know what to tell you... and I'm not going to keep going in circles because it's pointless.

[LUKE23]

It's a good thing you guys are talking about Sam. The story didn't get enough coverage during the draft.

[Kerb Hohl]

Well, in today's society he won't be treated like everybody else. That's what we're striving towards. However, in his workplace, his peers and onlookers would not have accepted if he had not told anyone this and ran over to the sideline and kissed a guy. It had to become public. That's the entire point. There are probably 20 gay players in the league and this entire struggle is that those players and millions of other people around the world are not able to be public about their life. It has to become a known, public fact for one person to open the doors to it being accepted in his workplace and society for everyone else.

It's something that at some point needed to be announced, because clearly the other guys in the league that are gay are under societal pressure not to release it or show anything publicly that they do.

You can do both. You can be a symbol for those who want to come out, but yes, someday, be it 2, 5, or 10 years from now, you can be "just another football player."

Not that this moment is as monumental in any way, shape, or form as Jackie Robinson, but it's the same thing in terms of how much coverage it may get. Books, movies, newspaper articles, etc. were eventually written about it. Technology wasn't the same so he couldn't have an immediate reality show (he also seemed to be maybe a bit more humble about it), but it still had to be viewed and talked about as a major event. If ESPN existed back then, it would be 90% of the coverage. Then, some day, when society progresses, it can be 0% of the covered when a black or gay player enters the league. However, to get to that point, somebody has to be open about it and present to the public that it is OK to initially happen.

[Newz]

It's a good thing you guys are talking about Sam. The story didn't get enough coverage during the draft.

This made me laugh. Perfectly placed.

[chuckleslove]

I had little issue with the way it was covered. I was watching NFLN on Saturday and they certainly were mentioning him more than need be but I expected that. I didn't have an issue with them showing him and kissing his boyfriend, you see that all the time with guys getting drafted kissing their girlfriends, wives and in the future boyfriends.

I have no clue why they thought it was a good idea to keep the camera rolling as they did the cake stuffing in the face thing, that was just awkward and way over the top. I don't blame Sam for celebrating that way but the TV crew needs to know that after he is drafted all you need is follow up interviews.

Overall it was just like the media did with Manziel on day 1, way overblown with the amount of coverage vs the quality of the player but not unexpected and all was fine until they kept the camera rolling and had cake and crap. I'm not even sure why they were doing that since that is something you do at a wedding and as far as I know they didn't exchange vows and get married after he got drafted and even if he did there is no reason to have the cameras there.

[Balls2TheWalls]

I think that he would have endeared himself a lot more to me if he would have turned down the documentary, and said that it was time for him to focus on football. He was shying away from the attention going into the draft, but picking up the Oprah Winfrey series left a bad taste in my mouth.

[Ayt]

Let's talk about Michael Sam the NFL prospect. He was a very high level player in college enough so that he was the SEC DPOY. That is impressive, but plenty of players are studs in college who can't hack it in the NFL.

He's 6-2, 261 and he definitely isn't enough of an athlete to play OLB in a 3-4, so he's an undersized DE. At 6-2, he tied for the 2nd shortest at the DE position. He tested out horribly as an athlete. He ran a 4.91 40. The 40 isn't the end all be all, but that is a poor starting point (17th worst out of the 22 DEs tested at the combine). He posted the worst 3 cone time amongst the DEs at the combine at 7.80 (and it wasn't particularly close). A 7.80 cone time is more what you'd expect from a 300+ lb guy who is a solid athlete (like our Khyri Thornton at 7.83, 304 lbs). He posted the worst vertical amongst DEs at 25.5 (the same as 331 pound Louis Nix, FWIW). He tied for the the 2nd fewest amount of bench reps amongst DEs.

Even if you are a great technician as a pass rusher (and that is basically his only shot of making it), those physical limitations are extremely difficult to overcome.

Given how poorly he tested out and the fact that he's undersized, his chances of making the NFL were fairly slim regardless of everything else. If people can draw some inspiration from this documentary, I could definitely see his motivations for doing it. If it is also a way for him to make some money and gain exposure for life outside of football as a 7th rounder who is a long shot to make the league, good for him.

Could this hurt his chances of making the team? I absolutely think that is the case. Still, his chances were very slim anyway. I can understand people who think he should just focus on football, but I also think it is very smart of him to hedge his bets a bit while also making a documentary that could have a positive social impact.

If he does beat the odds and make the team, even better. People can juggle multiple things at once. In this instance, I think how he is handling all of this is the smart way to go about it.

[crkone]

So reality TV is now referred to as a documentary? Good for him for getting paid by Oprah.

[PkrsBcksGphsMqt]

Reality show/documentary is on hold now. Good move if he really wants to stick in the league.

[eagle13]

I'm not interested if aaron is banging muna? I'm definitely not interested in sam kissing anyone. Why all the publicity around any and everything sexual? Just do it and enjoy it but STFU.

[PkrsBcksGphsMqt]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/TyDunne/status/468425217820610560[/tweet]

[Newz]

Huh. Hopefully Nelson is only $9-$10 million a year based off of those numbers. Maybe we could even get him for less.

[Ayt]

I like Brandon Marshall.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3uMnKEHCkk#t=0[/youtube]

[GB_Packers]

Playoff expansion talks tabled until the fall meetings but it's looking like it could be in place for the 2015 season. Yay. 6-10 playoff teams here we come.

Maybe they should give out trophies to every team at the end of the season for participating.

[MartyConlonOnTheRun]

Playoff expansion talks tabled until the fall meetings but it's looking like it could be in place for the 2015 season. Yay. 6-10 playoff teams here we come.

Maybe they should give out trophies to every team at the end of the season for participating.

I think what will make this worse is teams not caring about seeding. I assume with 7 teams you would only have 1 buy? Getting through healthy becomes extremely important since you have a little buffer since you don't need you win your division to get in.

[chuckleslove]

Minneapolis gets the Owl in 2018

http://www.startribune.com/local/259968691.html


Obviously it is a few years away but would be pretty **** sweet to win an Owl in their building.

[PkrsBcksGphsMqt]

Minneapolis gets the Owl in 2018

http://www.startribune.com/local/259968691.html


Obviously it is a few years away but would be pretty **** sweet to win an Owl in their building.

Yep, just like winning in Jerry's World.

Also, can you imagine how many **** Packer fans would be in that city if we were playing in it? Like half the state of Wisconsin would be in the twin cities on the day of the game. That would be awesome.

[glenn]

Ndamukong Suh gets weirder all of the time.

“Why do I want to be here long-term? I think I said this from the very, very first day I got drafted: I’m here for a reason,” Suh said. “I had an opportunity — probably a lot of you guys don’t know, I could have gone elsewhere when I was drafted. Had that decision in my hands. I chose not to take it.

“First day I got drafted, I had that decision in my hands. I chose not to take it because that’s just the way I saw it. Same thing when I went to Nebraska; I wanted to be a part of something that wasn’t just already set up or on its way of getting better and I want to be one of the cornerstones of it. So that’s what I see myself here in Detroit, being one of the cornerstones that gets this organziation back to a championship level. And like coach (Jim) Caldwell said: We’re not in a rebuilding year, we’re in a year of going to get a championship, and that’s what I want to be here for.”

Asked to clarify how he could have gone elsewhere in a draft when quarterback Sam Bradford went No. 1 overall and the Lions held the No. 2 pick, Suh said, “There’s many ways to do things.

“You can drop down in the draft, you can move up in the draft, people can come get you,” he said. “There’s a lot of things that happen that you guys don’t know.”

But players don’t have the choice of where they go in the draft, right?

“It is my choice. It is, for sure, my choice,” Suh said. “But like I said, that’s water under the bridge. I’m here in Detroit, I’m happy to be here in Detroit, I’m going to continue to play my heart out as I’ve always done and continue to do.”

http://www.freep.com/article/20140521/SPORTS01/305210169/ndamukong-suh-detroit-lions

[RiotPunch]

dafuq?