St. Louis Rams defensive lineman Michael Sam broke barriers by becoming the first openly gay player to be drafted into the National Football League (NFL). But not everyone is comfortable about his presence.
In an interview with the Tampa Tribune, Tony Dungy, a Super Bowl-winning coach and a respected figure in American football, said he would not want anything to do with an openly gay player on his team because of the accompanying distractions.
"I wouldn't have taken him," said the normally soft-spoken Dungy.
"Not because I don't believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn't want to deal with all of it … It's not going to be totally smooth … things will happen."
Dungy's comments touched off a firestorm of criticism.
Appearing on sports television network ESPN, pundit Keith Olbermann pointed out Dungy's hypocrisy by noting how Dungy had been a mentor for controversial NFL star Michael Vick.
Vick's NFL career was interrupted by a two years in jail for operating an illegal dog-fighting ring where the animals were brutally treated and frequently killed.
Dungy was a vocal supporter of Vick when he returned to the league before the 2009 season. As Olbermann pointed out, Dungy seemed less worried then about the distractions accompanying a convicted dog killer.
Olbermann also noted that Dungy's passive-aggressive "distraction" excuse for keeping gay men out of football had once been used in identical form to keep black men like Dungy out of football.
"Tony Dungy just admitted that Tony Dungy wouldn't be a skilled enough coach to deal with the distraction of doing the right thing," Olbermann quipped.
In an interview with the Tampa Tribune, Tony Dungy, a Super Bowl-winning coach and a respected figure in American football, said he would not want anything to do with an openly gay player on his team because of the accompanying distractions.
"I wouldn't have taken him," said the normally soft-spoken Dungy.
"Not because I don't believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn't want to deal with all of it … It's not going to be totally smooth … things will happen."
Dungy's comments touched off a firestorm of criticism.
Appearing on sports television network ESPN, pundit Keith Olbermann pointed out Dungy's hypocrisy by noting how Dungy had been a mentor for controversial NFL star Michael Vick.
Vick's NFL career was interrupted by a two years in jail for operating an illegal dog-fighting ring where the animals were brutally treated and frequently killed.
Dungy was a vocal supporter of Vick when he returned to the league before the 2009 season. As Olbermann pointed out, Dungy seemed less worried then about the distractions accompanying a convicted dog killer.
Olbermann also noted that Dungy's passive-aggressive "distraction" excuse for keeping gay men out of football had once been used in identical form to keep black men like Dungy out of football.
"Tony Dungy just admitted that Tony Dungy wouldn't be a skilled enough coach to deal with the distraction of doing the right thing," Olbermann quipped.
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