Also, it was very clear based on his comments that Dan Patrick knows of at least one major NFL star who is gay but hasn't chosen to come out yet.

Is this considered an active player if he isn't on a roster?

How do Collins and Tebow know each other?

Expert strategy to increase chances of getting a roster spot next year imo

its pretty clear that one of the NFL players who isn't out is Brady.

Genius move by Collins so when he inevitably gets cut/not signed he has a lawsuit for discrimination.

good for him

SI is actually moderating the comments on the article, which is probably a good thing as it looked like YouTube for a while there

Yeah, 'cause 7-footers in their mid-30s who suck never get work in the NBA.

Take it from a lolhawks fan who has seen his share of awful players get real minutes:

Jason Collins is godawful

not taking anything away from his article or choice

he did have his moments vs HGH tho:
http://pointsperpossession.com/nba/3...robert-eckstut

It baffles me people really can't see how this is a big deal. Nearly half of the US is against gay marriage.

I'm probably just cynical, but this looks less like a courageous choice and more like an effort to stay relevant and get paid. Which, ain't nothing wrong with that, and if he encourages more players to come out, good on him. But like, he sucks. He's risking ~nothing by doing this (in terms of fan goodwill, lost endorsements, etc.) and stands to gain quite a bit.

Good for Jason Collins. Now if we could only get a real athlete to come out.

Jason Collins comes out and Chris Bosh starts trending on Twitter

Yeah, pretty sure everyone's gonna want the gay player, that's why there's thousands of male pro athletes, almost certainly homosexuals in their ranks, and not one of them has come forward.

Is there some calculation to it? Yeah, I imagine so - Collins's career is likely nearly over, so he might not have to go through a media + team gauntlet at all. But I think you're underestimating how difficult this could be for him.

Thinking of these things as mutually exclusive is the wrong way to look at it. Revealing a major aspect of yourself that you've kept hidden literally your entire life, even from your twin brother -- an aspect that you know, at a minimum, is going to open yourself up to a great deal of bigotry, even if that is not the dominant reaction -- is courageous, no matter what. That there are other variables that impact the situation for any professional is hardly a secret and, imo, not something that undermines the fundamental courage of the act.

This observation may be fairly trivial, but I think it is frequently underestimated: in situations where someone makes an interesting/unprecedented/unexpected decision, there are often multiple necessary causes.

it's not on NEWSER yet.

some of it has to do with desensitization to positive news stories.

Pretty awesome of him, current skills aside. Hopefully more follow suit soon.

Given that prior to him coming out, Jason Collins was unknown to 99% of the population and known as a ****bag scrub to the remaining 1%, I think it's a near certainty that his "getting paid" potential is higher now than it would have been before. I'd be happy to bet on this if there were some way to quantify it.

Fair point - something can be both courageous and self-serving. It would just have a larger effect on the social consciousness if someone reasonably recognizable who still had a few good years left came out. Basically, this:

Some big time athletes showing support on Twitter. Kobe, Strahan, etc.

I'm sorry but I'm missing the part where gay athletes are beloved by the populace at large.

I guess all those still-closeted gays in pro sports hate money.

Look at Chris Kluwe for example. He's obviously being an advocate because he's passionate about the cause. But that hasn't stopped him from gaining 10s of thousands of twitter followers and signing a book deal and getting speaking arrangements.

I think he's perfect type athlete to do it. A veteran who had respect in locker room, toward end of his career, and now opens the door forothers to follow.

I can't tell if you're blind or being deliberately obtuse. But lol at you either way.