There are "plenty" of gay players in the NFL, they are just too afraid to come out, said former pro football player Ryan O'Callaghan.
Having kept his own sexual orientation a secret for over a decade, the now openly gay athlete knows the struggles other NFL players in similar circumstances face.
"I can promise you there's plenty of closeted NFL players," the former NFL lineman told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "I think it's safe to say there's at least one on every team who is either gay or bisexual. A lot of guys still see it as potentially having a negative impact on their career."
O'Callaghan was drafted by the New England Patriots in 2006 and went on to play with the Kansas City Chiefs until 2011. During that time, he chose to hide his sexual orientation from the world but struggled with thoughts of suicide as a result.
In 2010 it all became too much for O'Callaghan. Plagued with ongoing injuries and questions about his own identity, he turned to prescription pills to ease the pain, Outsports reported in 2017. After alienating friends and family, he eventually sought help with a clinical psychologist who helped him make sense of his life.
In 2017 O'Callaghan came out as gay. Now he is reaching out to other players struggling with their own sexual orientation.
In his upcoming book, "My Life on the Line: How the NFL Damn Near Killed Me and Ended Up Saving My Life," O'Callaghan highlights how exhausting it is for a gay player in the NFL to try and pass as straight. He said that many athletes choose to do so in fear of losing contracts and endorsement deals.
"I just don't think people understand the reality," said O'Callaghan. "We can still get fired for being gay or denied services for being trans."
The Thomson Reuters Foundation reported that the NFL has not yet seen an openly gay player on the field and that less than 10 have come out in retirement.
O'Callaghan said it would have to take a high-profile gay player in the NFL to come out in order for there to be a change. Does he think the NFL locker room is ready for an out player and gay teammate? Absolutely.
"I’ve had chats with the higher-ups in the NFL and they’re aware that there are gay players and they want to do what they can to help the next player," he told The Big Lead. "I’m pretty confident that the team will be fine with an open player. Their play on the field is going to have to speak a lot louder than the media that’s going to be talking about them being gay."
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