Carl Nassib, First Openly Gay Player to Play in an NFL Game, Announces His Retirement

Carl Nassib, a defensive end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the first active player in the NFL to come out as gay, announced his retirement last week. Nassib, who was picked by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft, played first with the Browns, then went to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and then ended up on the Las Vegas Raiders before returning to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for his final season.

The professional athlete made the announcement in an Instagram post. “This is a bittersweet moment for me but after seven seasons and just over 100 NFL games I am officially retiring from football to focus on my company Rayze,” the statement reads. “It really feels like just yesterday starting out as a walk-on at Penn State. Football has given me more than I ever could have imagined. I can truly hang up my helmet for the last time knowing I gave it everything I had. Growing up, I loved how fun football was. I loved the pursuit of perfection. I loved the small window where every player has to chase their dreams. It makes it all the more exciting if you get there. It was always my dream to play in the NFL, even as a walk-on, and I really feel like the luckiest guy on the planet.”

Nassib made history during Pride Month in 2021 when he came out publicly, which was also done in an Instagram post. “Hey everyone, happy Pride Month,” says Nassib in the 2021 post. “Right now, I am sitting in a moment of gratitude and relief. Sadly, I have agonized over this moment for the last 15 years. Only until recently, thanks to my family and friends…did it seem possible for me to say publicly and proudly that I’m gay.” In his post, he also pledges to make a $10,000 contribution to The Trevor Project.

While Nassib was the first openly gay player to actually play in a regular season game, he was not technically the first openly gay player in the NFL. That honor goes to fellow defensive end Michael Sam who, according to ESPN, was drafted by the St. Louis Rams (now the Los Angeles Rams) in the seventh round of the 2014 Draft. Even though Sam was drafted, being drafted, especially in later rounds of the Draft, is no guarantee that a player will be able to play in a game. Sam only played in pre-season games before being cut by the Rams. He was picked up by the Dallas Cowboy’s practice squad later that same year, but was again cut without ever playing a game. Sam went on to play in the Canadian Football League and the European Football League, where he’s now a member of the Barcelona Dragons.

Nassib looks to focus on Rayze which, according to NBC News, is an app he launched that connects volunteers to non-profits. Nassib got the idea to launch the app in 2018 when he volunteered with the Bucaneers at a juvenile delinquent center in Tampa. “We visited with kids who were as young as 13 or 14 years old who were in jail cells—A lot of them were there because they were just running away from a violent home environment,” Nassib says to NBC News about his experience. “These kids were in really, really desperate need, and the most moving part about it was they were half a mile from where we went to work every day.”

While Nassib was hardly a superstar player—even referring to himself in his coming out post as simply a “lanky walk-on”—he certainly is a trailblazer in other ways. I can attest from personal experience that even being a queer football fan is difficult, as there’s a lot of toxic masculinity around the sport. One can only imagine how daunting the prospect of coming out as a player must have been. Nassib was not only brave in coming out, but his unwavering positive attitude and desire to give back have been inspirational. While he will probably not be remembered for his football skills, he will be remembered for his bravery and generosity.

Photo courtesy of NFL on Twitter