Cowboys Hold Press Conference To Announce Michael Sam Signing

Tebow 2.0 folks. This is what people are talking about when they say “distraction.” Its not about showering together in the locker room. It ain’t even about teammates who might disagree with his lifestyle. For the most part it sounds like the majority of guys in this League would put aside any differences for the good of the team. But stuff like this – press conferences to announce a practice player – is where the real distraction lies. Its the same thing as the Tebow situation. When the Jets flew him in on a private Jet and had him host his own press conference to be a back up quarterback, thats when people start saying “give me a fucking break.” Fans, players, and teammates alike start rolling their eyes at the dog and pony show. Then the interviews and the back pages and the TV specials start and all the sudden people grow to resent the guy who’s pretty much a nobody but is getting all the attention. Its not about him being gay. It was the same situation with Tebow being religious. Its about the guy who gets special treatment for something other than his play on the field. Thats what grinds people’s gears. Thats when the “distraction” sets in.  Even Jason Garrett was just on ESPN reiterating how we’re spending too much time talking about a practice player. His own coach thinks its getting out of hand.

It happened the exact way with Tebow and that guy was once a starting quarterback with a playoff win under his belt. This is a 7th round pick turned practice player. Its a thousand times more over the top. No surprise that the teams that have done this are Woody Johnson’s Jets and Jerry Jones’ Cowboys. Two teams that have loved the back pages and the attention and the headlines. Jerry Jones wants the Cowboys to be the Glitz and Glam of the Cowboys and he’s getting more of that with Michael Sam.

I certainly hope Michael Sam is good enough that one day he deserves his own press conferences and his own attention, and I don’t blame him for whats going on. But right now having him singled out for the media is a bad move for the team and for him. It just inspires all the “distraction” talk and leads to resentment from other guys who are on the same level as him but dont receive any of the same special treatment. Best thing for Michael Sam and whichever franchise he ultimately ends up with is to fly under the radar until his play does the talking.