Recent Forum Topics › Forums › The Rams Huddle › Thomas, Miklasz, & Adam Schefter on Sam
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August 30, 2014 at 5:24 pm #5588
znModeratorMichael Sam cut from Rams regular season roster
• By Jim Thomas
Michael Sam’s bid to become the first openly gay player to make an NFL regular season roster won’t come in St. Louis. At least not now.
In making tough final decisions to pare the roster to the 53-man regular season limit, Sam was released by the team Saturday. The University of Missouri all-American and SEC defensive player of the year now goes on the waiver wire.
The other 31 teams in the NFL now have until noon Sunday to claim Sam. If that doesn’t happen, he becomes practice squad eligible. Practice squad players can practice with the team, but can’t play in games. And Sam is a candidate for the Rams’ practice squad, in which case he ultimately could still work his way back up to the active roster.
Sam was taken 249th overall, with just eight picks left in the draft on May 10. He faced long odds from the start because the Rams are stacked on the defensive line, especially at his defensive end position.
From the outset it shaped up as a battle between Sam and undrafted rookie Ethan Westrbooks for the fifth spot at end behind Robert Quinn, Chris Long, William Hayes, and Eugene Sims.
Sam played well, with two sacks during preseason play, including an acclaimed sack of
Cleveland rookie Johnny Manziel on Aug. 23, in which Sam’s sack celebration included mimicking Manziel’s trademark “money” gesture.
But Westbrooks, undrafted out of West Texas A&M, also had two sacks and showed more burst and big-play potential. In addition, Westbrooks has the versatility to play inside at tackle, a valuable asset for a backup.
Sam, who spent Saturday in Columbia, Mo., watching the Tigers play South Dakota State in their opener, was a peace with himself after unofficially registering six tackles against the Dolphins.
He said he felt he had done all he could to state his case, and was confident he would make some NFL team. He survived Friday’s roster moves, when the Rams cut 17 players. But was one of four final roster moves Saturday.
August 31, 2014 at 1:58 am #5627
RamBillParticipantBernie: Sam’s story is still one of success
• Bernie MiklaszReleased at the final cutdown Saturday, rookie defensive end Michael Sam failed in his quest to make the St. Louis Rams’ 53-man roster.
That was his only failure.
In trying out for the Rams this summer, Sam triumphed over fear, paranoia, hatred and historically-embedded assumptions that are so hard to shake.
An athlete can’t declare that he’s gay. He’ll kill his career. Wrong.
An NFL team would never draft an openly gay player. Wrong.
A gay player wouldn’t be accepted by teammates. Wrong.
The presence of a gay player would cause “distractions.” Wrong.
“There was no distraction,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said. “If someone perceived or thought there may be a distraction — they weren’t in the building. We’ve said that all along. This was a football decision. Mike fit in very, very well. He was fun to be around. He was a good teammate. There was no issue there.”
The “distractions” thing always made me laugh.
Understand that distractions are everywhere in team sports. There are players getting arrested. Players flunking league drug tests. Players partying too much. Players making fools of themselves on social media. Players getting consumed by celebrity, wealth and fame and losing focus on their jobs. It’s part of the NFL culture … oh, but Michael Sam was going to arrive and set off an earthquake that would bring the house down? Please.
In Sam’s case, I viewed the “distraction” caterwauling as a protective shield carried by those that couldn’t quite bring themselves to tell the truth. They just couldn’t come out and admit that they didn’t like Michael Sam or approve of his lifestyle and were sourly displeased by the thought of a gay man being part of a team.
These folks didn’t fear distractions. They feared the fact that it was 2014 and the world was changing around them, and that Michael Sam was going to get his shot to play pro football — and frankly, there wasn’t a damned thing they could do about it.
The only people made uncomfortable with the Rams giving an opportunity to Sam are simply uncomfortable with the modern reality. And uncomfortable about their own intolerance.
Well, get comfortable.
It’s way past time to accept the differences in fellow human beings who want what everyone wants: health, happiness, love, family, accessible goals and the right to pursue a chosen career.
The Rams and Sam had the guts to go for this.
And their courage easily conquered cowardice.
There was one distraction at Rams Park this summer, and I guess you can say it was Sam’s fault … Sam Bradford, that is. The coaches and players were shaken for a day or two by the news that they’d lost Bradford, their starting quarterback, to a season-ending knee injury.
With Michael Sam there was no media stampede. There was one dumb story on ESPN about Sam’s showering habits. (And only ESPN was distracted — by having to issue an apology.)
There were no hidden spy cams to track Sam’s every movement. Rams players welcomed him. Sam went to work, practiced and studied hard, and impressed with his energy. He gave about as many interviews as any other player. Training camp was orderly and businesslike.
If Rams coaches, executives, players and staff could quickly accept Michael Sam as a person and a player, respect his relentless worth ethic and support his quest to make the squad, well, that’s more powerful than hatred or paranoia.
Sam’s coaches and teammates at Mizzou knew he was gay and didn’t care. The 2013 Tigers had a great season. The Rams were happy to have Sam in camp and may add him to their practice squad.
We assume that the other 31 NFL teams noticed that Sam was drafted, and spent the summer working in Earth City, and that Rams Park is still standing. And that Sam, the man, made a positive impression.
The Rams and Sam showed the way to enlightenment.
Perhaps less enlightened teams will be emboldened to follow.
“There were a lot of things that were said right around the draft, right after we drafted him that this was a historical moment, for the league and everything,” Fisher said. “We’re proud to be a part of that, but it was a great experience but there were no issues. No issues in this team meeting room, on the field, any place.
“I just think there was a lot more made of it than there should have been and obviously, as I said back at draft time, I was proud to be a part of that. Enjoyed the experience and with Mike (and) Mike’s got the ability, Mike played well. He has the ability to play someplace and it’s got to be the right place, it’s got to be a fit.”
When Fisher referred to “fit” he meant Sam’s potential to fill a role. He didn’t fit the 53-man roster in St. Louis because the Rams had an abundance of quality defensive linemen, shortages at other positions, and couldn’t afford the luxury of carrying an extra pass rusher. Moreover, Sam was outplayed by fellow rookie defensive lineman Ethan Westbrooks. As a seventh-round draft choice, the odds were against Sam from the beginning.
It didn’t work out for Sam. Not now, anyway. But Sam’s experience was a success on many other levels. Irrational fear and loathing will never vanish entirely, but Sam gave it a battering while knocking down a significant barrier.
As a player, Sam didn’t quite prove that he belonged on the 53-man roster. But as a person, Sam proved that he belonged in the locker room. More than that, Sam belonged at the center of a unique and powerful moment in sports history.
I doubt that we’ll see a seventh-round draft choice do as much for the NFL as Michael Sam has this summer. He opened doors and minds.
Far from being a distraction, he was an inspiration to the next Michael Sam … and the Michael Sam after that … and every subsequent Michael Sam who will refuse to surrender to homophobia or bigotry to follow their dream.
August 31, 2014 at 2:04 am #5628RamBillParticipantFisher: Cutting Sam was a ‘football decision’
• By Jim ThomasWhen the Rams selected Michael Sam just eight picks before the end of the 2014 NFL draft in May, Rams coach Jeff Fisher said it was a football decision — nothing more.
On Saturday, when the Rams made Sam one of their final cuts to reach the 53-man roster limit, it was also a football decision — nothing more.
“I will tell you this, I was pulling for Mike,” Fisher said. “I really was. I don’t say that very often, but I was. Mike came in here and did everything we asked him to do.”
But the odds were long from the outset for Sam, a consensus all-American and the defensive player of the year in the Southeastern Conference last season at the University of Missouri.
The Rams’ defensive line is stacked, particularly at the end position. New defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, in fact, has called it the best defensive line from top to bottom he’s ever been around during his lengthy coaching career.
“Those four defensive ends that we have on the roster are good,” Fisher said, referring to Robert Quinn, Chris Long, Williams Hayes and Eugene Sims. “And they play a lot. They’re very productive, as well as the tackles. It’s the strength of our football team.”
Couple that with the emergence of Ethan Westbrooks, the undrafted rookie from West Texas A&M, and there was no place for Sam on a roster that now has nine D-linemen.
“Nine defensive linemen on a roster is a significant number,” Fisher said. “If you go with 10, then you’re gonna be short someplace else.”
And the fact that the Rams are carrying cornerback Trumaine Johnson (knee) and center/guard Barrett Jones (back) on the active roster despite injuries that will sideline them for several additional weeks did Sam no favors.
There was some thought the Rams might place Jones, who’s rehabbing from surgery, on the injured reserve or IR/designated for return lists. As for Johnson, a starter, his injury may have been the reason the team decided to keep undrafted rookie cornerback Marcus Roberson.
Entering Saturday, the Rams had four roster moves to make after cutting 17 players Friday. As the clock drew close to 3 p.m., the deadline for reaching the 53-man limit, it became known that offensive guard Brandon Washington has been cut.
That move wasn’t expected, and meant there might be an opening for Sam to make the squad. Then it became known that defensive tackle Matt Conrath was being cut, which was expected. That meant there were just two unknown cuts — expected to be safety Christian Bryant and tight end Justice Cunningham.
Well, Bryant was cut. But Cunningham made the 53-man roster despite suffering what a source said was a high ankle sprain in the preseason finale against Miami. So instead of Cunningham being released, it was Sam.
Regardless of those machinations, Fisher said cutting Sam “was not a difficult decision.”
Fisher added: “Let me point out our sixth-round pick (quarterback Garrett Gilbert), and we had four seventh-round picks — none of them are on the active roster, OK? So we made football decisions with respect to our draft choices, with respect to our undrafted free agents.
“When you look at the big picture, that implies that we’re getting better. This team is getting better because we’re releasing draft choices.”
Three of those four seventh-rounders were released: Sam, Bryant, and offensive lineman Mitchell Van Dyk. A fourth, center Demetrius Rhaney, was placed on injured reserve last week with a knee injury.
Fisher pointed out that Sam saw a lot of playing time during the preseason, so the coaching staff got a good look at him.
“The second-most snaps on the defensive line — to Ethan Westbrooks,” Fisher said. “Well over 120, 130 snaps, and was productive. As we said on the front end of this, this was gonna be a tough road (for Sam).”
So Sam’s bid to become the first openly gay player to make an NFL regular-season roster now takes a different turn. The other 31 NFL teams have until noon Sunday to claim Sam off waivers. If Sam clears waivers, the next option is the practice squad.
In part for strategic reasons, Fisher was noncommittal when asked whether the Rams would try to add Sam to their practice squad.
Although practice squads have been expanded to 10 players this year from eight, the Rams need at least two receivers and a least two linebackers, for example, to help them get through practice. They’d probably like to add at least two defensive backs as well, a quarterback, and maybe an offensive lineman or two.
Even if it doesn’t work for Sam here, Fisher thinks he has the attributes to play somewhere in the NFL.
“Mike was co-SEC defensive player of the year because of his motor,” Fisher said. “I mean, he just plays hard all the time. He’s smart. I think he’s learned to use his hands better, hand placement. He’s gotten better in the pass rush.
“But the plays he made (in the preseason) were effort plays. After playing a lot of plays, effort plays are what you look for. So I think he’s got skills to fit in someplace.”
Fisher makes it a point to tell players face-to-face when he releases them. That wasn’t possible Saturday because Sam was in Columbia, Mo., watching the Tigers open their season against South Dakota State.
Fisher said he called Sam about an hour before his 3:30 p.m. press conference at Rams Park to tell Sam he had been cut. They plan to meet Sunday to talk things over more in depth.
On Facebook and on Twitter, Sam offered these thoughts on his Rams experience:
“I want to thank the entire Rams organization and the city of St. Louis for giving me this tremendous opportunity and allowing me to show I can play at this level. I look forward to continuing to build on the progress I made here toward a long and successful career.
“The most worthwhile things in life rarely come easy — this is a lesson I’ve always known. The journey continues.”
August 31, 2014 at 9:03 am #5657znModeratorAs a player, Sam didn’t quite prove that he belonged on the 53-man roster. But as a person, Sam proved that he belonged in the locker room. More than that, Sam belonged at the center of a unique and powerful moment in sports history.
I doubt that we’ll see a seventh-round draft choice do as much for the NFL as Michael Sam has this summer. He opened doors and minds.
I think Miklasz outdid himself on that one.August 31, 2014 at 10:07 am #5660RamBillParticipantESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter discusses what is next for defensive end Michael Sam as he looks to continue his NFL career.
http://www.rams-news.com/espns-adam-schefter-whats-next-for-michael-sam-video/
August 31, 2014 at 10:17 am #5661RamBillParticipantRams coach Jeff Fisher on cutting Michael Sam, and the process of making the decision. (1:29)
August 31, 2014 at 1:30 pm #5675RamBillParticipantESPN’s Mark Schwarz and Nick Wagoner discuss the Rams’ decision to cut defensive end Michael Sam and what could be next for Sam.
http://www.rams-news.com/wagoner-why-the-rams-cut-sam-video/
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This reply was modified 10 years, 2 months ago by RamBill.
August 31, 2014 at 4:22 pm #5704RamBillParticipantRams Insider Howard Balzer says the reports of Michael Sam being distraction were overblown and that he has shown that he is capable of playing in the league.
http://www.rams-news.com/balzer-michael-sam-not-a-distraction-showed-he-can-play-in-league/
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