Manti Te’o didn’t cause many distractions for the San Diego Chargers in his rookie season, so maybe Michael Sam also would be a good fit in Southern California.
That’s what Sam’s agent thinks, at least.
There are concerns that Sam, the first openly gay NFL draft prospect, could draw hoards of reporters to whatever team he is drafted. The Chargers proved they could downplay any distractions that a player might cause in 2013 after they drafted Te’o in the second round of the NFL draft.
“You know, I think the Chargers would be a great fit for him, especially considering the way that they handled the Manti Te’o issue,” Sam’s agent Joe Barkett told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “It seemed to blow over very easily once the first game had happened. I think that’d be a great spot for him to land. And he’d be close to us.”
Te’o became the biggest story of the 2013 draft after it was discovered that he had been “catfished” into thinking his girlfriend, who didn’t exist, had died. Te’o drew large crowds at the NFL scouting combine. But after he was drafted, the story disappeared from the press.
Sam is expected to draw similar crowds during February’s combine. Sam is projected to be picked on the third day of May’s NFL draft.
