Jordan Howard's debut season in the NFL culminated in one of the league's highest honors with a trip to the Pro Bowl.
Before he led the NFC squad in rushing with 21 yards in the game, Howard was approached by Jeremy Brener of OutSports and the Bears running back was among 14 Pro Bowlers who were in support of openly gay teammates:
"I'm pretty sure we would be supportive. We've been bonding together and that wouldn't change anything too much."
Michael Sam was the first openly gay football player to enter the NFL Draft and eventually went to the St. Louis Rams in the seventh round in 2014. But he never saw the field or recorded an NFL stat and officially retired in 2015. There are currently no openly gay players in the NFL.
OutSports was in Orlando, Fla., to check in with NFL players on LGBT issues, including comments on the tragic nightclub shooting in the city that rocked the nation in June.
Of the 18 players interviewed by Brener, 14 accompanied Howard in outwardly accepting a gay teammate while four other players took evasive action and did not directly answer the question.
Former Bears tight end Greg Olsen was among those who answered the question:
NFL
"I think it'd be great. It's a very open and honest group of guys. The locker room is a very understanding group and I think he would be treated no differently than everybody else."
Harrison Smith, Minnesota Vikings safety and former Notre Dame standout, said all that matters is "if you can do your job and you can play."
Joe Thomas — the outspoken left tackle of the Cleveland Browns — had maybe the most enlightening answer about how the landscape of the NFL locker room has evolved in recent years:
"It's amazing that the opinions in the locker room have changed 180 degrees from when I first started playing football to where they are right now. I think every locker room in the NFL would accept an openly gay teammate with open arms now, whereas it was such a taboo thing to even talk about when I first got into the league. I think that speaks to the tremendous progress that LGBT issues have had in such a short period of time."