NEW YORK, N. John Franklin-Myers Rams Jersey .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." Ndamukong Suh Rams Jersey . Nick Young scored 17 points for Los Angeles, which lost five of its last seven before trouncing the Pelicans, who beat them handily last week in New Orleans. Jodie Meeks and Xavier Henry scored 15 points apiece for the Lakers, who led by 20 points in the first half before coasting to their 12th win in their last 13 regular-season meetings with New Orleans. Marcus Peters Rams Jersey . They all do actually — Joel-Hans Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) July 22, 2014There is no confirmation that the date is actually happening, but that didnt stop Embiid from getting dressed up. Fresh cut..... Getting ready for dinner http://t.co/NNIfKyZQzx — Joel-Hans Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) July 23, 2014 Almost 930.. http://www.ramsrookiestore.com/Customized/ . Although the deal cannot be made official until the free agent moratorium period is lifted on July 10, Patterson has agreed to a three-year, $18 million extension to remain in Toronto, sources confirm to TSN.LONDON -- Mesut Ozil answered his critics to lift Arsenal out of its slump, while Liverpool slumped to a second successive English Premier League loss on Saturday. Ozil, Arsenals record $70 million signing, ended an eight-match scoring drought stretching back into last season, and also set up Danny Welbecks first goal for the club in a 3-0 victory over Aston Villa. The playmakers influential performance came after manager Arsene Wenger said he should not be a "scapegoat" for a trio of domestic draws and Champions League loss. The emphatic win ended Villas unbeaten start to the season, a week after the team stunned Liverpool at Anfield. West Ham inflicted Liverpools third loss in five rounds, beating last seasons runner-up 3-1. There were late goals in three of Saturdays games. Under-pressure Newcastle manager Alan Pardew saw his side stage a late comeback to draw 2-2 with Hull. Queens Park Rangers twice came from behind to also draw 2-2 with Stoke, and Victor Wanyamas 80th-minute goal gave Southampton a 1-0 win at Swansea that moved the south-coast club to second place. Villa started brightly against Arsenal, with American owner Randy Lerner at his first home game in almost two years, before collapsing and conceding three goals in four minutes. Welbeck, who joined from Manchester United this month, teed up Ozil to run through and roll past goalkeeper Brad Guzan in the 32nd minute. Ozil turned provider by crossing from the left flank and Welbeck powered in the ball from close range. Villas capitulation was capped by defender Aly Cissokho sliding in to turn a cross from Kieran Gibbs into his own net in the 36th. At St. James Park, Newcastle fans displayed banners against manager Alan Pardew, with the team without a leaggue win after five matches. Ramik Wilson Rams Jersey. What will encourage Pardew, though, is Papiss Cisse making an instant impact on his return from knee surgery. When Cisse went on in the 69th, Newcastle was 2-0 down to Hull after conceding from Nikica Jelavic and Mohamed Diame. The Senegal forward, who had been sidelined since April, scored after four minutes on the pitch, and stabbed in the equalizer in the 87th. "He shouldnt have played today, really," Pardew said. "My medical staff didnt agree that he should be included today -- I think he has trained five days." At Upton Park, Liverpool showed again just how much it is missing Luis Suarez, who was sold to Barcelona in the off-season. West Ham took less than two minutes, through Winston Reids header, to breach Liverpools defence, and Diafro Sakho chipped the ball into the net five minutes later. Although Raheem Sterling pulled one back for Liverpool in the 26th, Morgan Amalfitano latched onto Stewart Downings pass to score in the 88th to secure West Hams first home win of the campaign. Liverpool took until December last season to lose three matches before finishing second, but matching that league position seems a far tougher proposition. But Burnley and Sunderland are still searching for their first wins after drawing 0-0. QPR and Stoke have just one win each after their draw at Loftus Road. Mame Biram Diouf headed Stoke in front from close range in the 11th minute after Peter Crouch held off defender Rio Ferdinand to nod the ball to his strike partner. 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