Concha: Michael Sam’s Reality Show Could Help End NFL Career Before It Starts

Michael Sam is an historic figure.

In being the first openly gay player drafted by the NFL, Mr. Sam has endured the most scrutiny and discussion of any 7th-round pick, perhaps any pick, in the history of the game. Before being drafted, in interviews and even a Visa commercial, the 24-year-old has stressed the same theme: “Judge me for what I do on the field.”

Along those lines, a particular quote sticks out when reading Sam’s Sports Illustrated interview after he first came out earlier this year:

“You know, people — the media, of course — are going to make a big deal out of it. It is a big deal, but, you know, I’m just — I have a job to do. My job is to try and play in the NFL. Nothing else.”

Problem is… Sam’s decision to allow Oprah Winfrey‘s OWN network to do a reality show on him flies in the face of everything Sam has said in terms of the way the public should view him. If it’s only about playing in the NFL and nothing else, that nothing else of cameras following his every move just made his chances of actually making the St. Louis Rams roster considerably more difficult.

Know this: Rookies—particularly 7th round draft picks that routinely get cut before the season—don’t get their own reality show. Life is tough enough being a fresh new face on the team, and players and coaches alike will not take kindly to any rookie—gay or not—putting himself over the team. Making himself the focus.

Either way, at least for now, it’s a big win for Oprah. Her network struggled mightily at first despite the huge brand name, but is now operating in the black via reality programming (or as she describes it, a “documentary-series format”).

But for Sam, it only gets worse when considering the Rams organization didn’t even know about said reality show. According to TMZ, the deal was signed before Sam was even drafted but was kept private to avoid his stock to fall even further. Remember, the Missouri defensive end was originally supposed to go in the 4th or 5th round, but a (by all accounts) poor NFL Combine performance (which is basically an audition all prospects get in March) forced his value to drop. If Sam revealed the Oprah deal, the Rams (or any other team interested) may have avoided being part of the drama that goes along with any reality program. And by keeping it quiet until now, any trust the Rams had in him is already gone.

“Whatever is out of the realm of what a seventh-round pick does,” stated Rams general manager Les Snead before news of the show got out, “we made it clear: Don’t do it.”

So now Sam has a big decision to make: Cut ties with Oprah, or risk making the team. It’s not like the Rams have a pressing need at defensive end (Robert Quinn is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year with 19 sacks while Chris Long has been a Pro Bowl alternate the past three seasons). Even the backups at the position are solid. But if St. Louis does decide to cut Sam, rest assured you’ll hear from more than a few in the media (and especially on cable news) that the ax only fell because he’s gay. It’s too easy, too cheap a narrative to pass up.

In other words, the Rams will suddenly go from being courageous for drafting him to homophobic for cutting him all in one fell swoop. Amazing how that works…

So why is Sam doing this? Well, keep in mind that he does come from a poor, broken family. He was raised by a single Mom. At one point growing up, he actually had to live out of her car. Three of his siblings are already dead and two of his brothers are currently in jail. Opportunities to earn some real money to help his mother, his family, were non-existent until this year.

If Visa comes calling, of course you take the deal. If Oprah comes calling, you take the deal, yes… but only on the condition all footage is filmed after the season when the team — players and front office — may be more accepting of such a scenario (on the condition you make the final roster, which is a risk). Strike while the iron is hot, sure…but don’t blow the whole thing and cheapen the cause in the eyes of some in the process.

Michael Sam made history last Saturday. But unless he sacks his relationship with Oprah and follows his own advice about just concentrating on football, he’ll simply be known as the first openly gay football player to be drafted.

Instead of the first openly gay football player to be drafted and on an opening day roster.

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This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.