Michael Sam is taking his football dreams to Canada and has joined The CFL!
The Montreal Alouettes have signed the defensive end, and Sam will participate in their upcoming training camp, one of his agents, Joe Barkett, said in press releases.
Like most Canadian Football League rookies, Sam received a one-year deal with a team option for 2016, though it’s not uncommon for teams to let players out of the option year to pursue an NFL job if they have the opportunity.
The Alouettes confirmed the deal Friday morning on their website. Sam will be introduced at a media conference Tuesday in Montreal.
“I am very excited and proud to join the Montreal Alouettes and want to thank team Owner Robert Wetenhall, General Manager Jim Popp and Head Coach Tom Higgins for this opportunity,” Sam said in a statement through the team. “I cannot wait to put on the pads, get back on the field and work hard each and every day with my teammates to bring a Grey Cup to the great fans here in Montreal.”
The contract is scheduled to pay Sam $100,000 in 2015 – nearly double the CFL minimum of $51,000, and about the same as he’d make if he were on an NFL practice squad for the entire season. The option year is worth $150,000.
The Alouettes’ first preseason game is June 13. The 18-game regular season schedule begins at home against the Ottawa Redblacks on June 25 and concludes Nov. 8
Sam, 25, became the first openly gay player drafted by an NFL team when the St. Louis Rams selected him in the seventh round last year. But the Rams waived Sam in the final round of cuts, and the Dallas Cowboys released him from their practice squad in October.
The Alouettes owned Sam’s CFL rights and have had the one-year deal on the table for him for months. His decision to head north of the border follows his participation in the NFL’s veteran combine in March, though it didn’t yield a contract offer.
“With the signing of Michael Sam, we have become a better organization today,” Alouettes general manager Jim Popp said in a statement. “Not only have we added an outstanding football player, we have added even a better person that brings dignity, character, and heart to our team.”
Sam was credited with three sacks in the 2014 preseason with the Rams. He had 11½ sacks and 19 tackles for loss as a fifth-year senior at Missouri in 2013 and was named co-Southeastern Conference defensive player of the year.
Most recently, Sam was a contestant on the ABC show Dancing With the Stars, from which he and partner Peta Murgatroyd were eliminated on the season’s fourth episode.
CONGRATULATIONS!
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