Michael Sam on Wednesday got his second
chance to make it in the NFL this season when the Dallas Cowboys
signed him to their 10-player practice squad.
The decision to invite Sam to play for
Dallas came four days after the St. Louis Rams cut Sam from their
roster.
The 24-year-old defensive end – the
NFL's first openly gay player to be drafted – grew up in Hitchcock,
Texas, which sits about 40 miles southeast of Houston.
Owner Jerry Jones and coach Jason
Garrett told reporters that the pickup was “about football.”
“As a kid growing up in Texas,” Sam
said in a series of tweets, “I always loved the Dallas Cowboys, so
to join this incredible organization is really a dream come true. I
want to thank the Jones family, the entire Cowboys organization, and
the city of Dallas for giving me this opportunity. I look forward to
putting my helmet and pads on every day to work my hardest to help
bring a sixth Super Bowl Championship to Dallas!!”