The St. Louis Rams have cut Michael Sam,
the NFL's first openly gay player to be drafted.
The defensive end was let go as the
team trimmed its roster down to 53 players ahead of the start of the
official season.
NBC News was among the multiple sources
reporting Saturday that Sam would not play for the Rams during the
regular season.
“I want to thank the entire Rams
organization and the city of St. Louis for giving me this tremendous
opportunity and allowing me to show I can play at this level,” Sam
tweeted Saturday to his more than 180,000 followers. “I look
forward to continuing to build on the progress I made here toward a
long and successful career.”
He added: “The most worthwhile things
in life rarely come easy, this is a lesson I've always known. The
journey continues.”
At a press conference, Rams Head Coach
Jeff Fisher said that the decision to release Sam was “a football
decision.”
“I was pulling for him, but it didn't
work out,” he said.