Survey: NFL players would accept gay teammate

Players, in general, don't seem concerned with a teammate's sexuality. (USATSI)

Former Missouri linebacker Michael Sam announced earlier this month that he is gay. Other than a few anonymous comments from NFL types that Sam's sexuality will affect his draft stock, the response has been overwhelmingly positive both within the league and beyond.

In a recent anonymous survey of 51 NFL players, ESPN found that 86 percent don't care about another player's sexual orientation. Other findings:

• 62 percent said they had teammates or coaches who used homophobic slurs this past season.

• 76 percent said they would shower around a gay teammate.

• 54 percent said an openly gay player would be comfortable in an NFL locker room.

Steelers safety Ryan Clark spoke to that last point a day after Sam's announcement. He wondered how Sam's future teammates should behave around him. And while it may sound like a naive question, Clark explained that this isn't just about Sam being gay but about the culture of NFL locker rooms for everybody -- straight, gay, skinny, fat, handsome, ugly.

"You want to know how you can behave around this person," Clark said. "Anyone who has been in a football locker room knows that there's a lot of jokes, a lot of ribbing. We'll talk about anything. If a guy is fat. If a guy is ugly. If a guy's significant other is not attractive. These are things you josh each other about and you talk with each other about. In what ways can you talk to him? In what ways can you involve him in your conversations? What are the things you can do and say around him that won't make him uncomfortable? That won't make him feel that he's being ostracized? Or that won't make him feel like he's being harassed or quote, unquote bullied?"

One NFL starting receiver offered this advice to ESPN: "Whoever takes [Sam in the draft] should have an open talk at the beginning of camp, where everybody can ask what he's comfortable with, what offends him, what boundaries there should be. When it comes to race, people already know the boundaries, to a certain extent. But I don't think football players are overly familiar with what can and can't be said around a gay person."

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Ravens want to get RB Ray Rice back on track, but they won't forget about RB Bernard Pierce either



Ray Rice really struggled in 2013. Perhaps he never fully recovered from a hip injury suffered in Week 2. Perhaps he simply wore down after a four-year average of 347 touches per season. You could definitely put some blame on his offensive line. Whatever the reason(s), offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak was very clear on what Rice still means to the Ravens' offense: "I think as he goes, we'll go," Kubiak told the team's official website. "... We've got to get him going. That's the bottom line."However, Rice won't be alone in the backfield work. Kubiak said "it's hard to hand it to one guy 30 times a game; they just get worn down." That's where Bernard Pierce comes in. While Rice could muster just 3.1 yards per carry this season, Pierce was even worse -- 2.9 yards per. But Kubiak wants to get him involved, similar to how he used Ben Tate to take some of the burden off Arian Foster with the Texans.



Pierce had 152 carries this season. Tate never topped 190 in any of his three seasons with Kubiak. So, Pierce might still an uptick, but Kubiak would probably like to give Rice 300-plus touches if possible. Therein lies the rub. Is it possible? Can Rice handle another year with a large workload? He is only 27, but there is a considerable amount of wear on his tires. And yes, that offensive line needs work. Plus, I thought the Ravens were interested in actually adding a running to this picture?Whether Rice's body is up for the challenge, and if this season was really the beginning of the end for him are concerns that will surround Rice's draft stock through the summer.