Dungy would not have selected M.Sam

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  • July 21, 2014 at 5:19 pm #2099
    zn
    Moderator

    Dungy would not have selected Sam

    By Mike Wells | ESPN.com

    http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams

    INDIANAPOLIS — Former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy said he would not have selected University of Missouri defensive lineman Michael Sam if he was still coaching.

    Sam, who is gay, was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the seventh round of the May draft.

    “I wouldn’t have taken him,” Dungy told the Tampa Tribune. “Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.”

    Colts general manager Ryan Grigson said on the draft’s final day that Indianapolis considered selecting Sam with one of their picks.

    Sam’s situation may end up being a distraction inside the locker room and for the franchise, but the Rams deserve credit for being willing to select him.

    Coach Chuck Pagano and punter Pat McAfee were two of the many Colts who earlier this year said they would have no problem with Sam’s orientation inside their locker room.

    “I love the environment we’ve created, the culture we’ve created,” Pagano said earlier this year. “I think we have an outstanding locker room. The Colts never have and never will discriminate based on sexual orientation. We look at the player. We’ll evaluate him just like we evaluate everybody else. If he can help our team and help us win football games, he’ll be more than welcome.”

    • This topic was modified 10 years, 3 months ago by zn.
    July 21, 2014 at 6:05 pm #2106
    TackleDummy
    Participant

    “I wouldn’t have taken him,” Dungy told the Tampa Tribune. “Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.”

    I wonder if Dungy would have drafted the first black as the Rams did back in the ’40s. Or if he were in charge of the Dodgers back then if he would have signed Jackie Robinson.

    Could that quote be “I wouldn’t have taken him,” Dungy told the Tampa Tribune. “Not because I don’t believe Jackie Robinson should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.”

    • This reply was modified 10 years, 3 months ago by TackleDummy.
    • This reply was modified 10 years, 3 months ago by TackleDummy.
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    July 21, 2014 at 7:58 pm #2110
    wv
    Participant
    TackleDummy wrote:

    “I wouldn’t have taken him,” Dungy told the Tampa Tribune. “Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.”

    I wonder if Dungy would have drafted the first black as the Rams did back in the ’40s. Or if he were in charge of the Dodgers back then if he would have signed Jackie Robinson.

    Could that quote be “I wouldn’t have taken him,” Dungy told the Tampa Tribune. “Not because I don’t believe Jackie Robinson should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.”

    Damn, that would be a great question for him. I hope someone asks it.

    w
    v

    July 21, 2014 at 9:46 pm #2137
    zn
    Moderator

    Tony Dungy: I wouldn’t have taken Michael Sam

    Michael David Smith

    http://m.nbcsports.com/content/tony-dungy-i-wouldn%E2%80%99t-have-taken-michael-sam

    Former Colts and Buccaneers head coach and current NBC analyst Tony Dungy says that if he were still an NFL head coach, he wouldn’t have drafted Michael Sam, who became the first openly gay player in league history when the Rams selected him in May.

    “I wouldn’t have taken him,’’ Dungy told the Tampa Tribune. “Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth . . . things will happen.’’

    What Dungy is expressing publicly is similar to what some coaches and general managers have said privately, in anonymous quotes in stories about Sam before the draft. But Dungy is the highest-profile person in the NFL world to put his name behind the viewpoint that Sam would cause a distraction and would be more trouble than he’s worth.

    Dungy’s comments therefore serve as a reminder that the Rams deserve credit for not allowing the concerns about distractions to keep them
    from picking Sam. We don’t know how many teams passed on Sam because he’s gay and how many teams passed on Sam because they simply didn’t think he was a good enough player, but we do know that the Rams were the team that ended Sam’s fall late in the seventh round of the draft. Whether Sam pans out as a player or not, the Rams made history by making the NFL more inclusive.

    And that’s where Dungy’s comments become troubling. If everyone refused to hire minorities because it could cause a distraction, no minority group would ever make any progress. Dungy has praised the late Chuck Noll for adding Dungy to the Steelers’ coaching staff in 1981, at a time when most NFL teams didn’t have any African-American assistant coaches. What if Noll had declined to hire Dungy because he worried that some of the white assistant coaches would have a problem with a black colleague?

    Dungy may be right when he says “things will happen” because the Rams have an openly gay player on their roster, but those things aren’t Sam’s fault. And those things shouldn’t prevent any NFL team from drafting an openly gay player.

    July 22, 2014 at 12:05 am #2139
    InvaderRam
    Moderator

    i don’t fault him for saying that.

    shoot if he didn’t want to deal with it, it’s better that sam go to another team. and not anybody would be able to handle it. just being a head coach is tough enough.

    July 22, 2014 at 9:11 am #2156
    zn
    Moderator

    Unfathomable

    Been listening to mike and mike this morning and they keep talking about weather or not Sam is good enough opposed to what ever view dungy may have. my thing is this. There is a difference in being “undersized” and not being “good enough” you dont get co dpoy especially in the sec for no reason. Wasnt he projected a 3rd or 4th round pick before he came out? Im not on either side of this “gay” argument personally im not gay but i dont have a problem with somebody being gay. That’s thier choice. I guess what im getting at is if dungy said this because he is anti gay personally and wouldnt take sam on that belief instead of what he could potentially do. isnt that thinking as a coach potentially bad for a team? letting personal view’s get in the way of what may be best for the team? Shouldnt a coach be more open minded. Just because Sam is the first dosent mean he is gonna be the last… Id rather have the publicity of having a gay guy on a/our team then micheal vick and his dog fighting. ( i used vick as an example because they were talking on their about how dungy said he would of been his “mentor” and took him to qb a his team if he were still coaching.)

    • This reply was modified 10 years, 3 months ago by zn.
    July 22, 2014 at 9:15 am #2158
    wv
    Participant

    Sam is making the NFL some money. Or else some people
    just like the number 96.

    w
    v

    Sam’s jersey sixth-best seller in NFL
    By Nick Wagoner

    http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/9755/sams-jersey-sixth-best-seller-in-nfl

    EARTH CITY, Mo. — It’s pretty common to see a rookie who has never played a game show up on the list of the NFL’s best-selling jerseys before training camp even begins. Many college players simply carry the name-value and fan following that makes proving themselves in the NFL unimportant when it comes to purchasing a jersey.

    You don’t, however, see rookie seventh-round draft picks on the list before they’ve ever taken a snap. But as we already knew, St. Louis Rams defensive end Michael Sam is clearly not your run-of-the-mill seventh-round draft choice. As the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam has already become one of the most well-known seventh-round picks of all time.

    If you needed any further evidence, simply take a look at the list of the top 10 in jersey sales on NFL.com from April 1 to July 17. Sam’s No. 96 jersey checks in at No. 6 on the list, behind established NFL stars such as Denver’s Peyton Manning and Seattle’s Richard Sherman and ahead of the future Hall of Fame quarterback trio of Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers. Heady company, for sure.

    Sam is also one of only two defensive players — Sherman the other — to make the top 10. Clearly, Sam’s historic announcement and pursuit of a roster spot in St. Louis has transcended his draft position and made his jersey a hot commodity among fans.

    If nothing else, Sam’s jersey is already considered something of a collector’s item. It will likely continue to sell well, but it’s still a piece of memorabilia that could have a short shelf life. There aren’t many fans who buy jerseys of a player who is far from a lock to make his team’s roster.

    That’s much different than the situation in Cleveland, where quarterback Johnny Manziel is No. 1 on the list in no small part because of his larger-than-life personality and the profile he brings into the league as a first-round pick. Manziel is a lock to make the roster and the only question surrounding his status in that regard is whether he’ll be the opening-day starter.

    Sam doesn’t enjoy the same luxury as he pursues a spot on the team’s initial 53-man roster with the possibility that those No. 96 jerseys could be out of date only months after they were purchased.

    July 22, 2014 at 9:20 am #2162
    wv
    Participant
    zn wrote:

    Been listening to mike and mike this morning and they keep talking about weather or not Sam is good enough opposed to what ever view dungy may have. my thing is this. There is a difference in being “undersized” and not being “good enough” you dont get co dpoy especially in the sec for no reason. Wasnt he projected a 3rd or 4th round pick before he came out? Im not on either side of this “gay” argument personally im not gay but i dont have a problem with somebody being gay. That’s thier choice. I guess what im getting at is if dungy said this because he is anti gay personally and wouldnt take sam on that belief instead of what he could potentially do. isnt that thinking as a coach potentially bad for a team? letting personal view’s get in the way of what may be best for the team? Shouldnt a coach be more open minded. Just because Sam is the first dosent mean he is gonna be the last… Id rather have the publicity of having a gay guy on a/our team then micheal vick and his dog fighting. ( i used vick as an example because they were talking on their about how dungy said he would of been his “mentor” and took him to qb a his team if he were still coaching.)

    Well, if you asked me to ‘predict’ which coaches wouldnt be inclined
    to pick Sam, I’d have speculated that Dungy would be on the list.
    Just cause he has always seemed (to me) to be a mix of
    “old school” and “old-timey-religion.”
    In a weird way, I think he’d have an easier time
    dealing with Vick than with Sam.

    Peepulz is complicated.

    w
    v

    • This reply was modified 10 years, 3 months ago by wv.
    July 22, 2014 at 9:42 am #2165
    c1ram
    Participant
    zn wrote:

    Tony Dungy: I wouldn’t have taken Michael Sam

    Michael David Smith

    http://m.nbcsports.com/content/tony-dungy-i-wouldn%E2%80%99t-have-taken-michael-sam

    And that’s where Dungy’s comments become troubling. If everyone refused to hire minorities because it could cause a distraction, no minority group would ever make any progress. Dungy has praised the late Chuck Noll for adding Dungy to the Steelers’ coaching staff in 1981, at a time when most NFL teams didn’t have any African-American assistant coaches. What if Noll had declined to hire Dungy because he worried that some of the white assistant coaches would have a problem with a black colleague?

    I suspect Dungy’s response would be that discrimination because of race is “different” than discrimination over sexual preference (with emphasis on “preference”). It is the wrong side of the argument, imo, but I hear it often enough.

    July 22, 2014 at 9:50 am #2166
    nittany ram
    Moderator

    When the Rams took Sam that was one of my proudest moments as a fan. I’m glad Fisher and Snead understand there are bigger issues at play here than possible lockerroom problems. On the other hand, if Fisher really suspected that drafting Sam would lead to widespread dissention in the lockerroom, he probably wouldn’t have drafted him. The fact that he did means he must trust that his players would be fine with it. Says a lot about the quality of the people he drafts.

    July 22, 2014 at 9:56 am #2168
    PA Ram
    Participant

    The whole key for Michael Sam was going to the right place. Obviously the Dolphins could not have drafted him.

    He may or may not make the team but he’s on a team where he will get a fair chance. That’s all he could have asked for.

    The Dungy quote surprises me a little bit. If I were to sit down and make a list of coaches who would or would not draft Sam, I would have put Dungy on the “draft” side because he always seemed like a likeable coach who players responded to. I wouldn’t expect him to have too many problems. Maybe his reason isn’t really the distraction part–who knows?

    "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick

    July 22, 2014 at 10:08 am #2170
    wv
    Participant
    PA Ram wrote:

    If I were to sit down and make a list of coaches who would or would not draft Sam, I would have put Dungy on the “draft” side..

    Oh yeah. Well if i were to make a list of posters
    who would have predicted that Dungy would be on
    a list of coaches who would draft Sam,
    you would be on that list of posters
    who would have predicted that Dungy would be
    on the list of coaches
    who would draft Sam.

    w
    v

    July 22, 2014 at 10:18 am #2171
    PA Ram
    Participant

    That’s very interesting, wv.

    Because, I have to tell you–if I were to make a list of posters who would have said that I would have predicted Dungy would be on the list who would draft Sam, I would have said either Nittany or JackPMiller.

    Thankfully, I had no money riding on that.

    "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick

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