More and more professional athletes are coming out of the proverbal closet and announcing that they are gay.

Some athletes and media personnel are OK with that but others are placed under heavy scrutiny.

Athletes like former tennis star Billie Jean King, professional basketball player Jason Collins, professional featherweight boxer Orlando Cruz among many other pro athletes have also come out of the closet and performed well in their respective sports.

When it comes to former Missouri University football standout Michael Sam, he is under fire about his decision to announce that he is gay prior to the NFL draft.

Ryan and Brendan debate on whether they think it was a good idea for Michael Sam to announce that he was gay before the NFL draft.

Ryan: I think it was a good move for Michael Sam at this time of his career. He is going into the NFL without any secrets, almost like a clean slate. He has nothing to hide and he can simply go out and play football and not have to worry about hiding anything.

I do not think an athlete’s sexual orientation should have an effect on his playing abilities.

If the guy or girl is a good athlete and is good at his or her sport, his or her sexual orientation should not make a difference on how her or she play the game.

Sam is combating the media for coming out but it is a lot of weight off his shoulders. I feel as if this could make him a better player. He has nothing to hide and can just play football.

If the coaches and other athletes have a problem with his sexual orientation that is just plain wrong. The guy is not hurting you in any way just because he is a homosexual.

If he can produce on the field and does not cause trouble in the locker room, there should be no reason for discrimination.

A lot of people think that he is doing this to get his name out there with the media and so that organizations will know his name, I feel as if he is doing it to get the weight off his shoulders.

It has to be hard to hide something that you have such strong feelings about and by being able to come out to the world and let everyone know who you truly are can lift a lot of weight off your shoulders.

The whole story will subside after sometime and then Sam can just play football.

Brendan: I have to disagree with Ryan on the timing of Michael Sam’s announcement.

I believe professional athletes should not have to hide behind the curtain about their sexually orientation; however, I do not believe Sam should have used the spotlight for more publicity.

For NFL fans who are not regular college football followers, they did not know about Sam before he announced his sexual orientation.

With the world of media and publicity that today’s society revolves around, Sam is becoming a household name very quickly.

More NFL teams will look at him in the draft because of the media and fan attention they will have. Teams will like this because it will increase ticket sales as well.

Sam should have kept his focus on the upcoming draft and waited to come forward with his sexual preference. All the attention on him is too overwhelming and may hurt him in the long run.

I do, however, believe Sam’s decision has set a good example for other players. It will lead to more athletes coming forward.

We will have to wait and see how this all plays out for Sam along with the other professional and collegiate players hiding under the radar.

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