Brendon Ayanbadejo says as many as 4 active gay NFL players preparing to come out of the closet

Brendon Ayanbadejo, who was cut by the Baltimore Ravens, still praises the organization for “laying the groundwork” for gay players to come out of the closet.

The Ravens terminated the linebacker’s contract Thursday. But the married father-of-2 praised the Ravens for supporting his self-appointed role as the NFL spokesman for gay marriage.

“The Ravens have been backing me, they knew my stance for years and have been facilitating me and organizing me with LGBT and set me up with Equality Maryland,” Ayanbadejo told The Sun. “They helped me,” he continued, “If they didn’t like what I was doing, they would have cut me a long time ago,” he said.

Ayanbadejo said the Ravens have laid the groundwork for as many as 4 active NFL players to come out of the closet. It is assumed that all 4 gay players are on the Ravens roster.

“I think it will happen sooner than you think,” Ayanbadejo said. “We’re in talks with a handful of players who are considering it. There are up to four players being talked to right now and they’re trying to be organized so they can come out on the same day together. It would make a major splash and take the pressure off one guy. It would be a monumental day if a handful or a few guys come out.

“Of course, there would be backlash. If they could share the backlash, it would be more positive. It’s cool. It’s exciting. We’re in talks with a few guys who are considering it. The NFL and organizations are already being proactive and open if a player does it and if something negative happens. We’ll see what happens.”