There are reports surfacing today that the NFL is expected to have its first gay athlete officially come out publicly, but is the sport ready?

With the current Supreme Court hearings on the issue of gay marriage in America this week, another big development for the gay community is happening in the sports world. Reports today are indicating that an unidentified NFL player will soon publicly come out as gay.

If this actually happens, it would mark the first time that a player publicly admitted to being homosexual while playing the game. Such progress has already been made in other sports, but with the NFL's reliance on a 'tough guy' image, the issue of homosexuality has been one largely ignored in football circles.

There has also been a considerable amount of negative attention drawn to the issue of homosexuality in the NFL in recent months. Three different players who worked out at the NFL's pre-draft combine all said that they were questioned about their sexual orientation, which of course is an illegal hiring protocol in America. Then of course there was the whole Manit Te'o situation. He too was asked about his orientation at the combine, and has also been the target of public scrutiny as many have suggested that his now-defrauded long-distance relationship was a cover-up for the fact he is gay.

The NFL does have some gay rights supporters, Minnesota punter Chris Kluwe and Ravens linebacker Brian Ayenbadejo among them. The standard M.O. however, is to keep quiet on the subject, especially as it relates to the locker room and team morale.

There has already been one player to come forward with his views against playing with gay athletes. San Francisco 49ers cornerback Chris Culliver was one such voice, and he did not mince his words when asked about gay players in the NFL just days before playing in the Super Bowl:

"I don't do the gay guys man. I don't do that." And after being asked if the 49ers had any gay players:  "No, we don't got no gay people on the team, they gotta get up out of here if they do."

Time will tell if the NFL is truly ready to embrace its first openly gay athlete, but there is certainly plenty of doubt surrounding the issue at this point in time. Those who say that a gay player would be accepted could be correct, but then one would have to wonder why this first pioneer is being so protective of his identity if he had nothing to fear.