Photo Credit: Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press
When I first heard about Michael Sam, I thought about how progressive he could be for the NFL and how he was going to be an example for the LGBT community and for the most part, he did a pretty good job while he was in the NFL. However, now it just seems like Sam is trying to keep his 15 minutes of fame instead of focusing all of his energy into being a better football player.
Earlier this week, Michael Sam had a disappointing CFL debut where he recorded no tackles and the fact that he had walked away from the Alouettes once already but was still collecting a paycheck. Now at the end of the week, Sam has announced that he will be leaving the Alouettes for a second time.
On Friday evening, Sam took to Twitter to break the news, “The last 12 months have been very difficult for me, to the point where I became concerned with my mental health,” “Because of this I am going to step away from the game at this time. I thank the Alouettes for this opportunity and hope to be back on the field soon. Thank you all for your understanding and support.” Clearly, mental health comes before sports and it looks like Sam will finally get the chance to find himself without the media constantly intruding.
It is unclear if Sam will return to the CFL or the NFL, but from the way that he played in college, there may be a little gas left in the tank. Regardless of what Sam chooses to do, hopefully, he can finally be at peace with himself and finally have the chance to actually breathe without constantly being put into the spotlight. All I can say is best of luck to Michael Sam in whatever he decides to do.
