Will the Atlanta Falcons be punished for sexual question?
Ohio State cornerback and mid first-round prospect Eli Apple made an appearance on Comcast SportsNet in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was asked what the strangest question he had been asked was during last week’s NFL scouting combine. His answer was rather shocking and very disappointing for the Atlanta Falcons’ franchise.
“The Falcons coach, one of the coaches, was like, ‘So do you like men?,’ “Apple said. “It was like the first thing he asked me. It was weird. I was just like, ‘no.’ He was like, ‘if you’re going to come to Atlanta, sometimes that’s how it is around here, you’re going to have to get used to it.’ I guess he was joking but they just ask most of these questions to see how you’re going to react.”
Joking or not, it is against the law to ask a player a sexual orientation question, period. It was made known to every NFL team two years ago that questions about someone’s sexual orientation is against league policy and that it would not be taken lightly.
While the name of the coach or assistant that asked the series of questions is unknown at the time, Falcons’ head coach Dan Quinn quickly made a statement shortly after Apple’s confession.
“I am really disappointed in the question that was asked by one of our coaches. I have spoken to the coach that interviewed Eli Apple and explained to him how inappropriate and unprofessional this was. I have reiterated this to the entire coaching staff and I want to apologize to Eli for this even coming up. This is not what the Atlanta Falcons are about and it is not how we are going to conduct ourselves.”
With noise-gate already looming over the Falcons heading into this year’s draft, the Falcons cannot afford to lose a draft pick over this. The Falcons lost a fifth-round draft pick, were fined $350,000 and team president Rich McCay was suspended as a result.
Next: The Atlanta Falcons should prioritize Alex Mack over Bruce Irvin
It would not come as a surprise if the Falcons are docked in some way for this childish act and that’s the last thing the Falcons need to be dealing with.