Carl Nassib, NFL’s first out gay player, announces Cleveland Browns draft pick

Carl Nassib was selected in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. Eight years later, he was once again be part of the draft.

Nassib took the stage dressed in a hoodie Friday with Peggy Rajski from The Trevor Project to announce the Browns’ second-round pick, each of them wearing a Trevor Project shirt.

“They do incredible work for crisis intervention for LGBTQ youth,” Nassib told the crowd in Detroit about the Trevor Project, which cheered.

The cheers turned to a smattering of good-natured boos when Nassib announced the Browns’ pick: Michael Hall Jr., who plays for Ohio State, a huge rival in the Big Ten to both Michigan and Michigan State.

In a predraft interview with CNN, Nassib talked about why his work with the Trevor Project was important.

“I’ve continued my support for the Trevor Project because there are kids here in the States, probably around the world, who would rather be dead than be gay and that really crushes me,” he said.

It’s a cool honor for Nassib, who in 2021 while with the Las Vegas Raiders became the first active out gay player in NFL history. By teaming him with Rajski, it reaffirms Nassib’s commitment to helping raise the profile and money for the Trevor Project, which provides resources to struggling LGBTQ youth.

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Nassib played in the NFL for seven seasons, despite being a walk-on at Penn State. He excelled enough to be picked by the Browns in the 2016 NFL Draft and played defensive end for them for two seasons. He then played two seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, two for the Raiders and closed his career with Tampa in 2022. He retired with 25.5 sacks in his career.

In its pre-draft scouting report on Nassib, NFL.com was prescient in picking up the traits that would make him excel:

“Nassib is a raw, inexperienced defensive end with an outstanding motor and the instincts and feel to make more plays than his athleticism might warrant. Football runs in the Nassib family and Carl is a willing, hungry worker who will have to improve his strength and add more wrinkles to his pass rushing approach in order to meet the projections that some teams have for him.”

Nassib cemented his place in NFL and LGBTQ sports history by coming out. The NFL putting him back on stage for the draft is a recognition of that.

This story was updated after Nassib made the pick.

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