TEMPE, Ariz. — The strain and sweat on their faces showed just how much one more chance in the NFL means to Michael Sam and 104 others.
Except for pro days for college players entering the draft, March isn’t usually a time for running sprints and drills before scouts. Then again, these “veterans” will take any opportunity to prove their worth.
“Whoever wants me,” Michael Sam said Sunday when asked about returning to the field for the initial NFL veterans combine. The first openly gay player drafted didn’t make it with the Rams last year, cut at the end of training camp. He landed on the Cowboys’ practice squad for a few weeks, then was released.
“If the Rams or Cowboys want me, I’m on the first flight out,” he said.
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“Absolutely, I think my chances are high,” the 25-year-old defensive end said. “As long as I have that will to play the game and I am healthy, you’ll continue to see me trying to play in this league. I am very confident I will be playing football somewhere.”
Sam didn’t rule out Canada, either: “If that’s the opportunity, I’ll take it. I’m a fighter and I’m going to keep fighting.”
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Sam’s disclosure that he is gay brought a wave of attention to the NFL from those outside sports. The Rams were applauded for selecting him, albeit eight spots from the end of the proceedings.
That he didn’t make the roster, the team said, was purely a football decision, and Sam was trying to break in on one of the league’s top pass-rushing units.
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“I’m young and I’m still good,” Sam said. “I don’t have any injuries. I’m going to play.”
Many of the players in Tempe have played extensively in the league and were among more than 1,800 applicants for this combine. Whether they were released or, quite often, injured, they couldn’t – or wouldn’t – come to grips with their NFL careers being over.
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