St. Louis Rams cut Michael Sam, the NFL's first openly gay player

The St. Louis Rams cut Michael Sam, the NFL's first openly gay player to be drafted by a team, today.

Sam was dropped in the final round of cuts, as teams narrowed their rosters to 53 players. The Rams could still put Sam on their practice squad, but for now, he is available to be picked up by one of the league's other 31 teams. Sam recorded 11 tackles and three sacks in four preseason games, and he told reporters after Thursday's "final exam" against the Miami Dolphins that he felt confident in his ability to play in the league.

"I'm very confident that I'm going to be on a team, the Rams or any other team in the NFL," he said. "It's not going to be like the draft."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The former standout Missouri defensive end was selected in the seventh round of the draft by St. Louis, but he faced a challenging task moving up through the Rams' solid defensive line ranks.