Michael Sam: 'I'm a football player,' not a trailblazer

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- Michael Sam is surely a man with a message.

"I'm a football player," the rookie defensive end declared Tuesday after the St. Louis Rams completed their first full-squad practice in pads and was asked if he wanted to be a trailblazer.

Fair question.

Sam is a football player, no doubt, trying to beat seemingly long odds and land a job with one of the best defensive lines in the NFL. But he's also trying to become the first openly gay football player in the league, which has put him on the map.

At what point will people just ask Sam about football?

"When I lay somebody out that first game," he said.

We'll see.

The Missouri product was undoubtedly the only seventh-round pick this year to have his own post-practice press conference. Shoot, just when you may have expected Sam Bradford or Chris Long to be made available, Sam was the only Rams player on Tuesday to be featured.

Then again, he also happens to be a seventh-round pick whose jersey sales rank sixth in the NFL.

"I'm a football player," he reminded his audience, two minutes after saying it the first time.

That was his response when I asked him if he felt he belongs in the NFL. Sam — who revealed his sexual orientation about two weeks before his unspectacular performance at the scouting combine — was the SEC's Co-Defensive Player of the Year last season, but was drafted 249th overall. Only seven picks remained after the Rams grabbed him.

I'm wondering about his sense of the talent level he is competing against as he tries to stick on the next level.

"I'm a football player," he repeated. "This is football. It feels natural."

Still, when the comments by former coach Tony Dungy to The Tampa Tribune were published last week that maintained he would not have drafted Sam because of the potential distraction, the ensuing firestorm provided a fresh reminder about the social significance of Sam's presence.

Distraction? What distraction?

Sure, Sam had a post-practice presser, but largely the day at Rams camp seemed pretty typical. There were no protestors or gay rights activists rallying. More than 1,600 fans attended the practice — including a longtime fan who screamed things at players such as, "Stick him!" and "Nobody is your friend!" — but there was no heckling aimed at Sam.

"Business as usual," Rams defensive tackle Michael Brockers told USA TODAY Sports. "Focus on football. That's what time it is. He's a Rams defensive lineman, and we treat him as that."

General manager Les Snead said, "The biggest distraction right now is the weather. It's cool." The forecast was for temperatures in the low 80s, with low humidity — so rare for the typically steamy summer days here.

Dungy may have been speaking for a lot of coaches who would rather pass on Sam than deal with the potential distraction of a Summer of Sam.

Given all the hoodlums that have been given jobs in the NFL amid all sorts embarrassing situations, to pass on Sam just because of a potential distraction doesn't tell the full story.

NFL teams and coaches deal with distractions all the time — especially if a player is good enough.

During Tuesday's practice, he was hardly spectacular but certainly not out of place. As a marginal prospect, making the team will come down to the wire for Sam.

It might hinge on whether he excels on special teams. Since the last offseason minicamp, he dropped 13 pounds to get to 257 pounds on his 6-2 frame. He said the weight loss has improved his speed — which he'll need as a pass-rusher and to get down the field on the kick teams.

Fisher told USA TODAY Sports he will likely keep "nine-ish" defensive lineman.

Sam, though, hardly trying to do the math.

"Not at all," he said. "I'm looking at that guy right across from me and laying him out. That's my mentality."

Like a football player.