Thamel On Gresh & Zo: Michael Sam Is 'Tim Tebow Times 10'
Boston (CBS) - Sports Illustrated's Pete Thamel posted an article last night about the Michael Sam situation, where he quoted a number of NFL executives as saying that Sam's homosexuality will drop his stock in the upcoming draft.
This morning he joined Andy Gresh and Scott Zolak, and cautioned that this situation is, "Tim Tebow times ten." He believes Sam will be, "The ultimate test to how a locker room reacts if he gets drafted."
Thamel thinks he'll need to be brought into strong organization with a stable locker room, and named the Seahawks, Ravens, and Colts as possible landing spots.
When prompted by Zo, he added that "New England definitely fits because of their strong owner and their strong coach." He listed Jacksonville as a place where he doesn't think Sam would fit it due to the organizational instability and the southern culture surrounding the team.
Ultimately, Thamel believes this will hurt his draft stock. He said that Sam's coming-out could be a negative tiebreaker for a team that's on the fence about drafting him, and that teams may elect to take a different player to avoid the situation altogether.
However, if he does make it into a locker room he'll be aided by being surrounded by a younger, more tolerant generation of players.
You can listen to the entire interview with Pete Thamel here:
MORE SPORTS FROM CBS BOSTON