Jeff Fisher is strongly speaking out against a potentially damning report involving the then-St. Louis Rams, Michael Sam and HBO’s “Hard Knocks.”
The training camp behind-the-scenes show on HBO will feature the Los Angeles Rams this season, and according to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer, this isn’t the first time the Rams were considered for the show.
According to Baltzer, the Rams drafted Michael Sam, the NFL’s first openly gay player, in 2014 as part of an agreement with the league office. The Rams, in turn, would avoid an appearance on the show. The NFL, according to Balzer, saw St. Louis as a good spot for Sam who played at then relatively nearby University of Missouri.
However, Fisher on Thursday vehemently denied the report during an appearance on “The Mike and Mike Show.”
“That in itself is absolutely absurd, it’s 100 percent incorrect,” Fisher said, per ProFootballTalk.com. “I was really taken aback by those comments. It’s insulting, from my standpoint, as it relates to Michael. We had three seventh-round picks. When we drafted Michael he was the best player on the board. Who in their right mind would think that you give up a draft choice to avoid doing something like that?”
The 26-year-old Sam has yet to make his NFL debut. The Rams released him before the 2014 season began. He eventually signed with the Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad, but he never cracked the game roster.
