Las Vegas Raiders’ Carl Nassib comes out as gay, first active NFL player to do so

Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib came out as gay on Monday, making him the first active NFL player to do so. He announced his sexual orientation in a post on social media. 

The 28-year-old, who has been active in the NFL scene for 5 years, said in a video on Instagram that he hoped his example would boost the visibility of other gay athletes. 

“I just wanted to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay,” Nassib said in the video. 

“I’ve been meaning to do this for a while now but finally feel comfortable getting it off my chest. I really have the best life, the best family, friends and job a guy can ask for,” he added.

“I’m a pretty private person, so I hope you guys know that I’m not doing this for attention. I just think that representation and visibility are so important.”

“I actually hope that one day, videos like this and the whole coming out process are not necessary, but until then I will do my best and my part to cultivate a culture that’s accepting and compassionate,” Nassib further said.

Nassib is also donating $100,000 to The Trevor Project, a non-profit group that works to prevent suicide among LGBTQ youth in the United States.

Several players have come out after retiring from the league, which is the most-watched sport in the country, but Nassib is the first who came out while still playing.

Michael Sam, a college athlete, was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in 2014, after coming out as gay but he never made it to the regular NFL season and was released after a few pre-season games.

The Raiders, the team Nassib represents in the league, praised him in a post on Twitter.

“Proud of you Carl,” the team wrote on its official Twitter account.