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NEW YORK, N. Adidas NMD Clearance .Y. - Michael Sam waited and waited. Hours passed, rounds came and went, and eventually, there were only eight more picks left on the third and final day of the NFL draft. For just a moment, it looked as if his chance of being picked by a pro team and becoming the leagues first openly gay player might take a detour. Or at least be delayed. The call finally came Saturday from the St. Louis Rams, the team right down the road from where Sam played his college ball at the University of Missouri. Sam was selected in the seventh and final round and admitted it was a frustrating wait. He said teams that passed on him chickened out and he should have been drafted sooner. "From last season alone, I shouldve been in the first three rounds. SEC Defensive Player of the Year, All-American," Sam said. He stopped short of directly saying his stock dropped in the draft because he came out. "You know what, who knows? Who knows? Only the people who sit in the war room know," he said. "They saw Michael Sam, day after day they scratched it off the board. That was their loss. But St. Louis kept me on that board. And you know what I feel like Im a (Jadeveon) Clowney, a first draft pick. Im proud of where I am now." Sam came out as gay in media interviews earlier this year. His team and coaches knew his secret and kept it for his final college season. He went on to have the best year of his career: He was the co-defensive player of the year in the NCAAs best football conference and had 11.5 sacks. The pick came after several rounds of suspense. The first round of the day, No. 4 overall, came and went, no Sam. Then the fifth and sixth, and finally, the day was down to just a handful of picks. When Mike Kensil, the NFLs vice-president of game operations, walked to the podium at Radio City Music Hall in the drafts final minutes to announce the Rams second-to-last pick, the crowd got a sense something was up. Very few of the last day picks were announced at the podium. Twitter lit up with suggestions the Rams were about to make news. When Kensil said: "The St. Louis Rams select ... Michael Sam..." the fans gave a hearty cheer, chanting "Yes! Yes! Yes!" and "Michael Sam!" Sam was in San Diego watching with friends and family at the home of his agent, Joe Barkett of Empire Athletes. ESPN and the NFL Network had cameras there and showed Sams reaction. Sam was on the phone bending over, with his boyfriend hugging him and rubbing his left bicep. When Sam got off the phone, the tears started. He gave his boyfriend a big kiss and a long hug as he cried and his eyes reddened. After, they shared cake — and another kiss. "Thank you to the St. Louis Rams and the whole city of St. Louis. Im using every once of this to achieve greatness!!" Sam tweeted with a frenzied typo moments after he was picked, with a picture of himself wearing a Rams cap and a pink polo shirt. The six-foot-two, 255-pound Sam was considered a mid-to-late round pick, far from a sure thing to be drafted. He played defensive end in college, but hes short for that position in the NFL and slower than most outside linebackers, the position hell need to transition to at the professional level. He was taken with the 249th overall pick out of 256. Players from Marist, Maine and Canadas McGill University — Redmen tackle Laurent Duvernay-Tardif went in the sixth round, 200th overall to Kansas City — were taken ahead of Sam. "In the world of diversity we live in now, Im honoured to be a part of this," Rams coach Jeff Fisher said during an interview on ESPN. The NFL had no comment on Sam being drafted. The impact of Sams selection goes far beyond football. At a time when gay marriage is gaining acceptance among Americans, Sams entry into the NFL is a huge step toward the integration of gay men into professional team sports. Pro sports have in many ways lagged behind the rest of society in acceptance. "Michael Sam wouldnt have been drafted five years ago," said former Viking punter Chris Kluwe, who has accused Minnesota of cutting him in part because of his vocal support for gay rights. In the last year, NBA veteran Jason Collins has come out publicly as gay, and is now playing for the Brooklyn Nets. Collins said before the Nets playoff game against the Heat that he was watching the draft and texted Sam after he was picked. "Its a great day for Michael and his family and for the NFL," Collins said. Publicly, most people in and related to the NFL have been supportive of Sam. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has said Sam would be welcome in the league and judged solely on his ability to play. A few wondered whether teams would be reluctant to draft Sam because of all the media attention that would come with it. Fair or not, the NFL — coming off a season in which a bullying scandal involving players on the Miami Dolphins was one of the biggest stories in sports — was looking at a possible public relations hit if Sam was not drafted. He would likely have been signed as a free agent and given a chance to make a team in training camp, but to many it would have looked as if he was being rejected. Now that hes there, it could be seen as an opportunity for the NFL to show that crass locker room culture is not as prevalent as it might have looked to those who followed the embarrassing Dolphins scandal. But all the reaction to Sams news wasnt positive from the league. Miami safety Don Jones posted a one-word tweet, "Horrible" shortly after Sam was drafted. It was later taken down. The teams general manager said he was aware, and was disappointed. Wade Davis, a gay former NFL player who is now the executive director of the gay rights advocacy group "You Can Play," said Sam only needs to do his job to have an impact beyond the field. "Michael Sam doesnt have to be a vocal advocate (for gay rights)," Davis said. "His visibility is his advocacy." Pharrell Williams Hu NMD Sale . The Brazilian driver had the second-best time in last months tests at Jerez and said the "good start" could play to his advantage when the season gets underway in Australia in March. Adidas NMD Womens Pink . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Keeping The Captain? Brian Giontas agent Steve Bartlett told La Presse on Tuesday that the Montreal Canadiens want to keep their captain - an unrestricted free agent on July 1 - in the fold, while sources tell the paper that the two sides will start talks this week. http://www.cheapnmdonline.com/adidas-nmd-mens-clearance.html .Y. - The Buffalo Sabres reassigned forward Sam Reinhart to the WHLs Kootenay Ice on Friday.DALLAS -- Monta Ellis scored 22 points and the Dallas Mavericks matched a season high with their fourth consecutive victory, 103-81 over the last-place Utah Jazz on Friday night. All-Star forward Dirk Nowitzki had 20 points while playing only 26 1/2 minutes for the Mavericks, who moved a season-best nine games over. 500 at 30-21. It is only the second time they have been that far above the break-even mark since their 2010-11 NBA championship season. Even with Utah at full strength, putting its best lineup on the floor and Marvin Williams making four 3-pointers in the games first 6 minutes, the Jazz lost their fourth game in a row. Jazz starting centre Derrick Favors was back after missing three games with an inflamed right hip and reserve forward Jeremy Evans had missed two games with a bruised tailbone and bruised right elbow. Utah has lost all six games Favors didnt start this season. Dallas only other four-game winning streak this season came in November, one capped by a 103-93 home win over the Jazz. The Mavericks play their last three games before the All-Star break on the road, then host Miami on Feb. 18 before three more games away from home. Williams finished with 21 points while matching his career high with five 3-pointers. Trey Burke had 13 points and Richard Jefferson 10. Jose Calderon and Samuel Dalembert each had 12 points for the Mavs. Utah jumped out to a 21-14 lead in the first 6 minutes on the strength of Williams long-range shots. He already had 14 points by then. With Nowitzki getting a breather, the Mavericks then scored 11 in a row as part of a 14-2 quarter-ending run to take the lead for good. Adidas NMD R1 Womens Raw Pink. Ellis made it 21-all with a 20-foot jumper, and the tiebreaker came on Brandan Wrights dunk with 3 minutes left in the first quarter. After starting the game by making eight of 10 shots with five 3s, the Jazz missed seven shots in a row during that scoreless drought of more than 4 minutes. It was also during that stretch when Williams missed his first two shots -- both on the same play, when he missed a layup and the follow-up tip try. John Lucas III made a 19-foot jumper and a 3-pointer on consecutive possessions to get the Jazz within 35-34 with 7 1/2 minutes left in the first half. They never got closer as Dallas went on a 17-3 run, including another spurt off 11 in a row during which Williams missed a slam dunk. NOTES: The Jazz are 13-9 with the starting five of Jefferson, Williams, Favors, Gordon Hayward and rookie Burke. They are 3-24 with seven other starting combinations. ... The halftime entertainment was the Texas Southern University band, with full drum line and loud horns. ... After Ellis and Burke traded 3-pointers midway through the third quarter, Ellis then made a 22-footer and fed Shawn Marion for a dunk that made it 69-57. ... Wright had another dunk, a one-hander on an alley-oop pass from Vince Carter late in the third quarter. ... The season series will end with two games in Utah, on March 12 and April 8. ' ' '