NFL Kicker Unloads Diatribe at Politician on Gay Marriage

A couple of NFL players are feuding with a Maryland politician over gay marriage—with the players arguing in favor and the Democrat protesting. The brouhaha began when Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo publicly endorsed same-sex marriage. In response, Emmett C. Burns Jr., a state politician and minister, sent a letter—published at Yahoo—to Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti, saying that he was "appalled and aghast" by Ayanbadejo's comments and that Bisciotti should "take the necessary action" to stop Ayanbadejo from expressing himself.

Ayanbadejo took to Twitter to defend himself. "Football is just my job it's not who I am," he tweeted. "And just like every American I have the right to speak!!!" But Minnesota Vikings' punter Chris Kluwe wasn't so polite. In a long (and very NSFW) response posted at Deadspin, he said he was "disgusted" by the politician's "vitrolic hatred and bigotry." "I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life," writes Kluwe. He wonders how Burns can be so "mind-bogglingly stupid," but the language gets a lot more colorful than that. (More football stories.)