By Kia Tyus

An article written by Tom Pelissero explains just how hard it is to make it in the NFL. Pelissero’s main focus is Michael Sam getting cut for the second time.

Pelissero jumped right into the article explaining how typically, no one would have noticed that the Dallas Cowboys cut a player from the practice squad. But, since Sam is an openly gay football player it is a bigger deal. I like that Pelissero jumped right into it because it gets an unimportant topic out of the way so Pelissero can focus more on what is important. While I understand that Sam being the first openly gay player in the NFL is a big deal, I don’t like how that particular story always seems to find itself in the news when there is more important stuff to discuss about the NFL.

Pelissero gave facts about the cut stating that linebacker Troy Davis would take Sam’s spot on the practice squad. Also this is the second time in two months that Sam is out of a job.

Something that surprised me about this article is how low of pay players receive for being on the practice squad. To be fair, you are not actually on the active roster, nobody knows who you are, and you don’t have to deal with all the extra drama and stress the active players and superstars deal with; but, Pelissero stated that practice squad member receive roughly $6,300 a week. Obviously for your average citizen that may not be half bad, but for billion dollar organizations I just figured that they would be paid a little more because they are the ones making the superstars better players.

Pelissero proceeded to then talk about Sam’s college stats. I liked the direction he took this because it shows that even someone who was an All-American and co-SEC defensive player of the year spot in the NFL is not guaranteed. Pelissero went on to say that may get you looked at by NFL scouts but, at the end of the day, size and speed play a big part in a player’s success in the NFL. I like how Pelissero explained that Sam simply is too small and slow for his position in the NFL. That just lets the general public know that being gay isn’t the reason why Sam currently isn’t making it in the NFL.

I like how Pelissero ended that article explaining how Sam shouldn’t give up hopes because many players have been cut more than they can probably count and still have succeeded in the NFL. It ended what seemed to be a negative article and giving it a positive light.