‘Dancing with the Stars’ 20: Will Michael Sam win over the critics?
Going into this season of “Dancing with the Stars,” we admit that we did not have particularly high expectations for Michael Sam. Football players have mostly done well on the show, but there have been a few who have really struggled (take a look at Michael Irvin and Keyshawn Johnson for examples of that). The one unifying theme for those who have done well is that they all spent major time with one football team and were able to rally their fans behind them. Michael doesn’t really have that going for him as he was with the St. Louis Rams and the Dallas Cowboys briefly before being cut.
Here’s where we start to feel sympathy for the man. If he tries too hard at this, everyone starts to claim that he’s fame-hungry, and that he is doing the same thing that he did with that OWN docuseries that ultimately did not go anywhere. However, what everyone forgets is that you don’t get money for not being on an NFL team. You need a source of income sometimes, and this show pays pretty well. Let’s face it… everyone is there for either the fame or the money so why single out just one person?
Then, if you read interviews with Sam, you end up getting quotes from him that while honest, also make it clear where his priorities are. Dancing in the ballroom is not at the top of the list. Speaking to ABC affiliate WFAA-TV reporter Dale Hansen (the same one who famously defended Sam in a viral video detailing the hypocrisy in NFL locker rooms), Sam made it clear that his #1 goal is getting a spot on an NFL team:
“I’d rather be playing football … I’m unemployed right now, so Dancing with the Stars is my source of income. My main goal … this past Sunday I was in Phoenix at the [veteran] combine and the next day I flew back to do Dancing with the Stars. My schedule is very busy.”
Here’s the difficult thing for Sam: Now there may be some out there who are going to feel slighted that there’s somewhere he’d rather be than the ballroom. For some reason, he has been put in a situation where no matter his opinion or his commentary, he cannot win in the eyes of the public opinion. He’s certainly known controversy before and should be prepared to handle it, but we have heard quite an passionate debate already about a guy on a ballroom-themed reality show.
We still think that Sam is going to have a hard time winning this season, but it’s hard to fault a man for actually trying to use his platform to have a little fun and spread a message, especially when he is not the one controlling if he gets the NFL paychecks or not.
We’ll be back tomorrow with our rankings for the remaining contestants, but if you want even more “Dancing With the Stars” spoilers, then head over to the link here and let us be your guide. Also, be sure to sign up if you want to get even more great TV news from us here at CarterMatt via our weekly newsletter. (Photo: ABC.)