Retired NFL linebacker Jeff Rohrer is gay and set to become the first former or current NFL player in a same-sex marriage, he revealed in a new interview published on Wednesday.
In theNew York Timesstory, Rohrer, 59, opened up about his sexuality for the first time.
“I’m sure there’s going to be some people out there who have a negative reaction to this,” Rohrer told the outlet, adding, “and I’m fine with it.”
Said Rohrer, “If I had told the Dallas Cowboys in the 1980s that I was gay, I would have been cut immediately. It was a different world back then, people didn’t want to hear that.”
Allen Zaki
In fact, it was football, he says, that kept him for coming out for so long.
He told theTimes, “People are born gay, as I was, though being gay was just something that had no place during the course of my football life.”
“But when I got divorced, I said the hell with it, I’m going to do what I’ve always wanted to do,” he added to the outlet. “Then I found Josh, and began to openly live the life I was born to live.
Rohrer — who was previously married to a woman and has two teen children — currently lives in Los Angeles with his now-fiancé, Joshua Ross, celebrity aesthetician and founder ofSkinLab.
Jeff Rohrer (left) and Josuha Ross.Allen Zaki
The pair met back in May 2015, according to theTimes, when Rohrer was still “completely in the closet.” He added, “And if not for Josh, I’d still be in there.”
Their romance began quickly — though Ross didn’t know for months that his boyfriend was a former NFL star — with Ross sharing that he was attracted to Rohrer’s “unselfishness.”
Ross told the outlet, “I guess that came from being a husband and a father, and always making sure his family came first.”
According to Rohrer, the wedding news will surprise many. In fact, he told theTimesthat one guest sent back his invite because he thought it was a joke.
“I’ve given at least five people heart attacks with this news,” he said. “But for the most part, many of my closest friends, including some of my former teammates with the Cowboys, could not have been more happy and supportive.”
Among the supportive? Former NFL Senior Vice President of Communications Greg Aiello, who told theTimesthat “People who really know Jeff will be happy for him, and proud of him for living his truth.”
source: people.com
