Jaguars assistant strength and conditioning coach Kevin Maxen comes out publicly as gay

Jacksonville Jaguars assistant strength coach Kevin Maxen came out publicly as gay Thursday, which makes him the first known openly gay male coach in the NFL and in all of American men’s professional sports.

Maxen joined the Jaguars’ strength and conditioning staff last season. He told Outsports’ Cyd Zeigler that a big part of why he wanted to come out publicly now was so that he could live openly with his boyfriend, Nick.

“I don’t want to feel like I have to think about it anymore,” Maxen said. “I don’t want to feel like I have to lie about who I am seeing or why I am living with someone else. I want to be vocal in support of people living how they want to live, but I also just want to live and not feel fear about how people will react.”

Maxen is the latest in the NFL to come out publicly as gay. Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Carl Nassib became the league’s first active openly gay player when he came out in 2021, when he was with the Las Vegas Raiders. Maxen said he reached out to Nassib after he came out. Former San Francisco 49ers assistant Katie Sowers made history as both the first woman and first openly gay coach in a Super Bowl in 2020.

https://sports.yahoo.com/jaguars-assistant-strength-and-conditioning-coach-kevin-maxen-comes-out-publicly-as-gay-225419526.html