Could Alan Gendreau Be The First Out Player In The NFL

There's an article in today's TIMES about a 23 year old kicker who would like to be the first openly gay player in the NFL. Actually, in the article, Alan Gendreau states that his real desire is just to play football in the big leagues and that he happens to be gay is more secondary in his mind. But if he were selected to play for a team, it would make history as he would be the first out player in professional football. 

Gendreau played for a small team in Tennessee and was out to his teammates at the time, though not publicly. He did well, though had a slump in his senior year which didn't help when the NFL scouts were looking. Now though he seems determined to make a play for the big leagues. 

While there has been a lot of talk in the NFL about preparing for an out player, said player has yet to materialize. Some feel that having an already out player be recruited is the more likely scenario but I'm not so sure about that.  It seems like that would be a tougher PR ball to manage than a successful established player who comes out.  Either way, despite the hype of this article, don't hold your breath. It will happen but probably not this season--unless, of course, there is a scandal which outs the player whether he likes it or not.