49ers CB Chris Culliver was bombarded with questions from reporters Thursday. (Photo: Kirby Lee, USA TODAY Sports) NEW ORLEANS — There was plenty of elbow room at Frank Gore's podium during the San Francisco 49ers media session Thursday Thursday morning, with only a half-dozen reporters talking shop with the impressive running back. Yet as Gore gazed one hundred feet or so across the room, he could easily see where the action was. The thick crowd was at Chris Culliver's table, ground zero for the hot topic of the day. The second-year cornerback ignited a frenzy with his senseless homophobic remarks to a radio shock jock, contending that a gay player would not be welcomed in the 49ers' locker room. Deer antler spray, move aside. The needle has moved on another issue. "I know Culliver," Gore said. "He didn't mean it the way it came out. He's a young guy." There's no excuse. If Culliver, 24, is old enough to hold down a job, he should know better than to declare such a definitive anti-gay stance. APOLOGY: Culliver sorry for homophobic comments FACING THE MUSIC: Corner covered in repetitive questions The way it came out from Culliver: "Ain't no gay people on the team. They gotta get up outta here if they do. Can't be with that sweet stuff." The 49ers issued a statement denouncing this position and a contrite Culliver apparently learned a lesson. He apologized during his mob-scene press session. Yet Culliver unwittingly provided the impetus for an intriguing question: Is the NFL ready to accept an openly gay player? "Sooner or later, it's going to happen in sports," contended 49ers wideout Randy Moss. "We need to accept it and move on. I don't look at gays in sports as a problem." The NFL, with its macho culture, has never had an active player come out of the closet and reveal that he is homosexual. It might take more courage than going over the middle. "It would be tough," Moss said. "That person would be ridiculed. Is it a bad thing? No, it's not." Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbedejo is undeniably the most outspoken proponent for gay rights in the NFL, so naturally, he drew quite the crowd at the Ravens media session Thursday. Ayanbedejo got into a public skirmish with a Maryland delegate earlier this season over the issue of gay marriage, and on Thursday declared that "we're winning the battle" for acceptance in the NFL. Maybe so. I asked Terrell Suggs if he would have a problem with a gay teammate, and he didn't blink. VIDEO: Which franchise has a better shot at being a dynasty? Story Highlights
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