Michael Sam's stint with the St. Louis Rams was short-lived, but the Dallas Cowboys recently gave him another chance.
The first openly gay player drafted by the NFL was released by the Rams on August 30 after the team needed to cut its roster to 53 players. He was initially drafted by St. Louis in May 2014, at the end of the last round of the NFL draft. However, after his release, he was not signed by the team to its practice squad and no other team seemed to want the rookie defensive lineman until the Cowboys came along.
In a report by the New York Times, Jason Garrett, coach of the Cowboys said, "We feel like he has a chance to come in at a position that we've tried to address throughout the off-season, throughout the training camp, and compete for a spot. The way we view the practice roster is, first and foremost, their job is to help facilitate practice. There's also a great opportunity for us to develop personnel and evaluate personnel, and this is no different for us."
Coach Garrett added, "We got nothing but good reports about him from people in St. Louis. We just want to give him a chance to come in and see if he can help our football team."
Garrett stated that the recent acquisition was all about football and refuted all questions regarding how Sam might affect or be treated in the locker room. He said, "That's your decision what question you want to ask. We're focused on football. That's where our attention is, and what people say outside this organization is really up to them.''
Even Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, had good things to say about Sam, "He was exemplary. He's relentless as a worker. He's relentless as a pass rusher. He is going to have to make up for a little speed. He's going to have to make up for size, but how many times have we seen that? That's what makes football.''
TIME.com writes that Sam has some things to offer to the Dallas defensive line. The 6'2", 261-pounder was a SEC co-defensive player of the year at the University of Missouri. Sam said, "I just want to do anything I can. On special teams, left end, right end, whatever. If you want me to hold the ball, I'll do it to perfection.''
In a report by Yahoo! Sports, Dallas is currently in need of improving its pass rush due to the loss of DeMarcus Ware and injured players in their defensive line, but it is unlikely that Sam will be part of the opening game of the Cowboys against San Francisco.