1. After Raiders defensive lineman Carl Nassib posted a video late Monday afternoon on Instagram announcing that he was gay, I sent this tweet:
Naturally, I got a few responses from clueless people who didn’t understand why Nassib’s coming out as an active player was significant.
As I said, just tweeting to get likes and retweets isn’t exactly productive, but here, public support for Nassib from star players is important because a lack of support from peers is what could deter future athletes from coming out.
It’s great to see fans, media and former players heap praise on Nassib, but it’s Nassib’s teammates and peers who carry the most weight in making him feel comfortable and accepted.