NFL free agent Ryan Russell comes out as bisexual and sets goal of returning to the league

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Ryan Russell in 2017, when he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

• NFL free agent defensive end Ryan Russell came out as bisexual on Thursday in an essay for ESPN.
• Russell wrote that he had two goals: "Returning to the NFL, and living my life openly."
• Russell was drafted in the fifth round by the Dallas Cowboys in 2015 and played three seasons in the league.
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NFL free agent defensive end Ryan Russell came out as bisexual on Thursday in a powerful, personal essay for ESPN.

In the essay, as told by ESPN's Kevin Arnovitz, Russell described the regret that came with not revealing his whole self during a recent interview with a team. "This is the last time I will ever interview for a job as anything other than my full self," Russell said. "Out of love, admiration, and respect, I want the next team to sign me valuing me for what I do and knowing who I truly am."

He continued:

"My truth is that I'm a talented football player, a damn good writer, a loving son, an overbearing brother, a caring friend, a loyal lover, and a bisexual man.

Today, I have two goals: returning to the NFL, and living my life openly. I want to live my dream of playing the game I've worked my whole life to play, and being open about the person I've always been."

Russell was a fifth-round draft pick by the Dallas Cowboys in 2015. He has played three seasons in the NFL, one in Dallas and two more with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In 2017, he appeared in 14 games for the Buccaneers, starting in seven of them, finishing the year with 17 tackles and two sacks.

Russell wants to change the lack of active pro athletes in major sports who are openly LGBTQ

Russell said that his decision to come out as bisexual came in part because there is currently not any out athletes in the four major sports leagues in America. "I want to change that," Russell said. "For me, for other athletes who share these common goals, and for the generations of LGBTQ athletes who will come next."

Russell also described an incident involving a writer that figured out he was in a relationship with another man and the stress that came with keeping his sexuality a secret.

"I panicked, then wrote back, reminding him that there were implications about his actions he didn't fully understand," Russell said. "If the blogger outed me, I was sure that would kill my career, one that was supporting not just me, but my mother and grandfather. He'd eradicate a childhood dream that was the product of years of work and sacrifice."

While the blogger eventually agreed not to out Russell, the experience was jarring.

"Nobody should need a favor to live honestly," Russell said. "In nobody's worlds should being careful mean not being yourself. The career you choose shouldn't dictate the parts of yourself that you embrace."

You can read Russell's essay in its entirety here.

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