SPORTS
NFL Player Comes Out as Bisexual
Free agent Ryan Russell had stints with Cowboys, Bucs, Bills
BY MATT TRACY
Ryan Russell, an NFL
player who is currently
a free agent, came out
as bisexual on August
29 in a personal essay on ESPN.
“My truth is that I’m a talented
football player, a damn good writer,
a loving son, an overbearing brother,
a caring friend, a loyal lover, and
a bisexual man,” the 27-year-old
defensive end wrote in the piece.
Russell is the fi rst out player in
the league since Michael Sam came
out ahead of the 2014 NFL Draft
and went on to play briefl y for the
Los Angeles Rams and the Dallas
Cowboys. But to date, there has
never been an out LGBTQ player
to play a regular season game in
the NFL.
Russell hopes to change that.
He is vying to return to the fi eld
for the fi rst time since the Buffalo
Bills released him during the preseason
last year — and this time
he can be his authentic self. A major
catalyst driving his decision to
come out was a meeting in early
August with an NFL team that was
interested in signing him. Having
healed from a 2017 shoulder injury
that carried into last year, he was
proud to tout his on-fi eld accomplishments
and show that he has
recovered from his injury.
“But for all the encouraging feelings
about the visit, I do have one
strong regret that has inspired me
to make a promise to myself: This
is the last time I will ever interview
for a job as anything other than
my full self,” he wrote. “Out of love,
admiration and respect, I want the
next team to sign me valuing me
for what I do and knowing who I
truly am.”
On the fi eld, Russell has enjoyed
moments of success combined
with unfortunate injuries
that have hobbled his ascent. The
6’5”, 275-pound pass rusher was
drafted by the Cowboys in the fi fth
round of the 2015 draft and saw
limited action in his fi rst season,
playing in just one game. He was
sidelined with an abdomen strain
in the fi nal month of the season
Ryan Russell (right) and his boyfriend, Corey O’Brien, enjoy a moment together at the beach in this
photo posted on August 29.
INSTAGRAM/ RYAN RUSSELL
Ryan Russell, number 95 in this photo, is seen
during his time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
and the Cowboys released him the
following year after he struggled
to make an impression in the preseason.
That same month, however, the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers scooped
him up and he went on to play in
eight games, recording four tackles
and a sack. Russell enjoyed a
healthy progression in 2017 when
he played in 14 games, including
seven starts, and totaled 17 tackles.
He tallied two sacks in his fi -
nal two games despite enduring a
dislocated shoulder.
But life in the closet meant that
Russell’s on-fi eld performance
INSTAGRAM/ RYAN RUSSELL
wasn’t the only thing consuming
his mind during those seasons.
Russell elaborated on the compromises
he made during the early
years of his NFL career when he
confi ded in loved ones and still
dated both men and women, but
did so in secrecy. He said he “had
to be strategic and cautious” about
meeting men during the season,
and that meant he was not always
“fully present in the locker room.”
Life on the DL became especially
problematic after his fi rst season
in the NFL when he said a blogger
came across an Instagram story
that featured him along with a man
he was dating. At Russell’s request,
the blogger agreed not to out him,
but the situation demonstrated the
diffi cult nature of an NFL player
navigating life in the closet.
Following his encouraging 2017
campaign, Russell resurfaced with
the Bills during training camp last
season — but he did not make the
opening day roster. Instead, however,
he had an opportunity to focus
on his personal life. He grieved
the death of his best friend, Joe,
who died of cancer, and he moved
to Los Angeles and “began writing
stories I wish I’d heard more of as
a child.”
“I continued to heal and train
for football because I knew my best
days as an athlete were ahead of
me,” he said. “I also began to date
openly and freely.”
In the refl ective ESPN piece,
Russell recalled the struggles he
endured as he grappled with his
sexuality while growing up. Like
many other queer athletes, society’s
expectations made him question
why he didn’t always fi t a particular
mold.
“I wasn’t fl amboyant, tidy, or any
other stereotypes kids are forced
to construct their world around,”
he explained. “I wasn’t straight,
hyper-masculine, or aggressive; I
cried quite a bit, and, as a young
black man, I didn’t fi t the bill. I
played football — so I put that in
the straight column. I wrote poetry
and romance stories — so I put
that in the gay column.”
In a YouTube video with his boyfriend,
Corey O’Brien, Russell said
that his fi rst time with a man came
when he was in college at Purdue
University.
“I was shaking the whole time
and was super nervous and scared
about what people would think,” he
said. “I slowly started experimenting
a little more, but then after that
I dated a girl, moved in, had a long
relationship with a woman in college
and enjoyed that, too.”
Once he reached the NFL, there
were times when Russell realized
he would not be able to come out.
Russell explained in the YouTube
video that he was even more discouraged
after hearing about
Sam’s stint with the Cowboys.
“Just the stories that I heard
about how the players handled
gay players, it was that moment
that I was like, OK, let’s go back in
the closet,” he said.
Although Russell said he never
lied about his sexuality, he still felt
deceitful about withholding that
information — but now, with a new
outlook on his life and career, he’s
looking forward.
“Today, I have two goals: returning
to the NFL, and living my life
openly,” he wrote. “I want to live
my dream of playing the game I’ve
worked my whole life to play, and
being open about the person I’ve
always been.”
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