Michael Sam has set a new milestone:
He's the first openly gay man to suit up for a professional football team's practice squad.
Sam was cut by the Rams over the weekend, suffering a major blow to his dreams of playing in the NFL.
But Dallas Cowboys coach Jason Garrett announced this morning during a news conference that his club has signed Sam to its practice squad, saying that adding Sam is "a good move for our football team right now."
"We're bringing a player in we wanted to see on the practice field and got nothing but good reports about him from our people and the people in St. Louis," Garrett said. "We just want to give him a chance to come in and see if he can help our football team."
Sam performed very well in the preseason for St. Louis, racking up three sacks and leading the team in tackles in its final exhibition game.
But the Rams have a plethora of defensive linemen and simply did not have room for Sam, a former SEC Defensive Player of the Year.
Sam, of course, came out as gay prior to the NFL draft in May and critics believe he'll serve as a locker room distraction.
But Garrett shot down this chatter, even calling out those who have perpetuated it.
"I think we've probably talked too much about [Sam being a distraction to his teammates]," he said. "He's a practice-squad player we're going to bring in here to try to give an opportunity to help our football team."
Ellen Page made a major announcement in early 2014: She's gay. We applaud her for it.
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