Carl Nassib is sharing a hilarious pre-coming-out NFL story in a newly resurfaced podcast clip from earlier this year.
Nassib, a defensive end and linebacker who made history in 2021 as the first active NFL player to come out as gay, was on The Pivot Podcast with hosts and former NFL players Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor, and Channing Crowder when he shared a "hilarious" story about how NFL players subverted his expectations before he came out.
In this clip, shared by X account @FBGreatMoments, when asked if the NFL was filled with stereotypical "meatheads" before he came out, Nassib says that actually, he has stories that show the opposite is true.
Nassib recalls a game from 2020 in which his Raiders faced his former team, the Browns. The Browns kept running bootleg plays in the opposite direction of Nassib, meaning he had to run all the way across the field each play.
"They did three bootlegs in a row to start the second half, and I was so mad," Nassib says. "And these are all my former teammates, and so I'm chasing the third one, I said, 'Stop the gay ass bootlegs!'"
"The entire Browns O-line turns around at me [and says], 'You can't say that!'" Nassib remembers. "And I was like, 'Oh man, the league is ready for this! You know what I mean? They are ready for me! Like, we got some allies here!"
As the hosts laughed, Nassib pointed out the irony that he, who was about to come out, was the one who used "gay" pejoratively, and he got "shut down by five massive dudes in stereo."
Nassib also acknowledges that he was "ignorant" with his own comments, but jokingly adds, "but stop running boots!"
Nassib was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2016 and also played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Las Vegas Raiders.
He came out in 2021 while playing for the Raiders, becoming the first active NFL player to do so. He rejoined the Buccaneers for the 2022 season and retired from the league in 2023.
