Philly Eagles Linebacker Says He’d Be Fine Having a Gay Teammate

Connor Barwin says if someone on his team came out, he "would support that teammate no matter what."

If you haven’t heard already, there are rumors floating around the web that a pro NFL player is planning to come out of the closet soon. There’s still no word about who it is, but the news has inspired some in the NFL to start stupid-blabbing. Last week, Seattle Seahawks defensive end Chris Clemons tweeted that, while he’s “not against anyone,” he thinks the person should have come out in high school or college, and that coming out in the NFL would be a “selfish act.”

The dude obviously doesn’t have a clue, and Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Connor Barwin — whose older brother is gay — wants to set him straight. In an interview on USA Today Sports Barwin says,

I don’t think it would be selfish. … As a heterosexual man, I can’t speak to what it must feel like to be gay in the NFL. I don’t know what somebody goes through. I imagine its very hard to go through. So I would support that teammate no matter what. I don’t think it would be a distraction. And even if it was, the NFL has distractions in every locker room. You would work through it like anything else. If somebody had a problem with a teammate being gay, they would realize very quickly that it was something they could get over.

Barwin — a member of Athlete Ally, a group that encourages LGBTQ tolerance in the sports community — is one of several pro NFL players who have released supportive statements — along with Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo and Cleveland Browns linebacker Scott Fujita. Hmmm … I’m starting to see a trend here. Linebackers must have bigger balls. Hut, hut!

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