Real reason St Louis Rams picked gay player Michael Sam?

THE St Louis Rams made history by drafting Michael Sam as the first openly gay player in the NFL, but there may have been strings attached to that move.

THE St Louis Rams made history by drafting Michael Sam as the first openly gay player in the NFL in 2014, but there may have been strings attached to that move.

According to NFL reporter Howard Balzer, the team cut a deal with the league to draft Sam late in the seventh round to avoid an appearance on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series.

“It’s been almost two years since the St. Louis Rams selected defensive end Michael Sam in the seventh round of the 2014 draft. At the time, the Rams were hailed for being progressive and drafting the first openly gay player in the National Football League,” Balzer wrote.

“It turns out, according to multiple sources, that the league agreed not to ask the Rams to appear that year on HBO’s yearly summer series, HARD KNOCKS, if they drafted Sam.”

It is understood the team did not want to be involved with the reality show because the intrusion of HBO’s cameras would have proven a distraction to players and coaches.

Sam tweeted, “I’m not surprised at all” in response to the report.

I'm not surprised at all https://t.co/wGnyFpuIVP

— Michael Sam (@MichaelSam52) March 23, 2016

St. Louis was viewed as the ideal landing spot for the now-failed prospect because he had just completed his college career as a defensive end at nearby University of Missouri.

The Rams were eligible to appear on the reality series two years ago, but head coach Jeff Fisher furiously denied the implications of the report on Thursday.

“That in itself is absolutely absurd, it’s 100 per cent incorrect,” Fisher said on ESPN’s Mike & Mike.

“I was really taken aback by those comments. It’s insulting, from my standpoint, as it relates to Michael.

“We had three seventh-round picks. When we drafted Michael, he was the best player on the board. Who in their right mind would think that you give up a draft choice to avoid doing something like that?”

Michael Sam during his brief stint with the St. Louis Rams.

After Sam was cut before the start of the regular season, he signed as a member of the Cowboys practice squad, then was released in October 2014.

He’s now a free agent following a brief, bizarre stint in the Canadian Football League.

“It’s really unfair to Michael. Michael worked so hard,” Fisher said. “It’s really not fair to Michael because of all the hard work he put in.”

The Rams will appear on “Hard Knocks” this summer and agreed to play a home game in China in 2018, another NFL chore after being allowed to relocate back to Los Angeles.

The league has not commented on Balzer’s report.

Originally published as Real reason St Louis Rams picked gay player Michael Sam?