During the week of Feb. 20 through Feb. 26, the 2013 NFL combine was held in Indianapolis where hundreds of the nation’s top college football players all gathered to showcase their talents to the 32 teams in the NFL.
This year, however, was different from past NFL combines for a variety of reasons. Maybe it was because former University of Notre Dame standout linebacker Manti Te’o would be there and speaking in front of the media for the first time since the news broke that the death of his girlfriend Lennay Kekua was a hoax.
As if that story wasn’t controversial enough, some NFL teams had to pour more fuel on the fire by asking Te’o and other future draftees about their sexuality, a topic that certainly created controversy leaguewide.
Reactions to players being asked about their sexuality varied greatly. Some believed that there was nothing wrong with teams raising questions about sexual orientation while others believed that teams completely crossed the line and had no right to ask players, “Do you have a girlfriend?” “Are you married?” “Do you like girls?” All three of these were questions reportedly asked of the players. I personally believe in regard to the last question — the NFL completely crossed the line and had no right to ask it.
The league’s collective-bargaining agreement with the players states, “There will be no discrimination in any form against any player by the Management Council, any Club or by the NFLPA because of race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or activity or lack of activity on behalf of the NFLPA.” The Players’ Association has since indicated that it intends to investigate these allegations made by many different athletes. Any teams found guilty of asking questions of this nature will be subject to further discipline for violating league policy.
Teams are asking questions about players’ sexual orientation not because they are homophobic or even because they actually care whether he is gay or not.
The reason teams ask early on in the drafting process is because they are trying to avoid any issues that could potentially arise later down the line and have a negative impact on their organization.
Whether a person is gay or not has no effect on his or her ability to play a sport. Many current NFL players have since come forward and indicated that having a gay teammate would not affect them or their organization.
Buffalo Bills safety George Wilson said, “At the end of the day, when you’re one of the guys in the locker room, you’re one of the guys. As long as you can stay productive and get the job done, you’re still gonna remain one of the guys. At the end of the day, your personal preferences have nothing to do with your productivity when it comes to the playing field.” Other players asked included Ray Edwards, Takeo Spikes, Taiwan Jones and Kamerion Wimbley, all of whom reacted similarly to Wilson.
Not only should teams not have asked players these types of questions during their relatively short 15-minute interviews, but the NFL needs to make sure questions like these are banned from being asked in the first place. They are inappropriate, not to mention in violation of league policy. No player can be hired or fired based on sexual orientation. With that being said, no team should even feel the need to ask.
Christopher Miller is a freshman studying broadcast journalism and sport management and a columnist for The Post. Did the NFL have the right to ask about sexual orientation? Email Christopher at cm001111@ohiou.edu.
