Could Michael Sam Have a Future in Pro Wrestling If His NFL Beef Doesn't Cool Off? Hulk Hogan Says Maybe

12-time World Champion Hulk Hogan said Michael Sam may be able to make it in pro wrestling if his NFL dreams don't pan out. And as of now, they haven't been.

Hogan made sure to include a disclaimer, though, when talking about Sam to TMZ.

"You gotta be able to work hurt," Hogan told TMZ. "You can't be taking a day off from wrestling because you twisted your pinkie if you're wrestling the main event at Madison Square Garden."

Is that a dig at Sam's sexuality, or the sometimes frail-sounding listings on NFL injury reports?

Sam made history in February when he announced he is gay in interviews with ESPN and the New York Times.

"I understand how big this is," Sam, a senior at the University of Missouri at the time, told ESPN then. "It's a big deal. No one has done this before. And it's kind of a nervous process, but I know what I want to be ... I want to be a football player in the NFL."

That still hasn't happened, despite a spectacular senior season at Missouri which saw him lead the SEC with 11.5 sacks, and stints with two NFL teams. After falling all the way to the 7th round in the NFL draft — which some believe was the result of his revelation — Sam failed to crack either the Rams or Cowboys active rosters.

The Cowboys released Sam from the practice squad on October 21, and another team hasn't since signed him.

Both the Rams and Cowboys said they cut Sam for football reasons. But Sam thinks he's unemployed for another reason.

"I think I was the SEC Defensive Player of the Year last year," Sam, the first opening gay football player, told TMZ last week. "... so I don't think it had to do with talent."

Sam was positive following his second release.

"While this is disappointing, I will take the lessons I learned here in Dallas and continue to fight for an opportunity to prove that I can play every Sunday," Sam said then, according to the Daily News.

Before being cut by the Rams, Sam's jersey was one of the most popular in the league, as USA Today reports.

Sam came out to his teammates during his senior season, and afterwards helped Missouri to a 12-2 record, No. 5 national ranking and a Cotton Bowl victory.