Michael Sam to Oprah: Gay NFL players reached out to me in gratitude

“A very few reached out to me and pretty much just told me their gratitude and how thankful they were that I had the courage [to come out],” Sam said in the interview, which will be shown on OWN on Saturday night. “They wished that they had the courage to come out.”

Sam was cut by the Rams just before the season began. Although he was signed to the Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad, he was cut Oct. 22 and has not been signed by another team.

“Gay men in the NFL reached out to me and showed their respect and admired my courage,” Sam told Winfrey. “There’s a lot of us out there. I’m not the only one. I’m just the only one who’s open.”