SAINT LOUIS, Mo. ---- Michael Sam's effort to become the first openly gay player in the NFL has been cut short.

Sam was released by the Saint Louis Rams and, according to ESPN, no other teams have picked him up from the waiver wire.

Sam won SEC Defensive Player of the Year last season and was taken in the seventh round of the NFL draft.

"I was pulling for Mike. I was. I don't say that often, but he came in here and did everything we asked him to do. Mike's got the ability. Mike played well. He has the ability to play some place. It's got to be the right place," said Jeff Fisher, Head Coach of the Saint Louis Rams.

About an hour after he was cut, Sam tweeted out a message for his followers saying "The most worthwhile things in life rarely come easy. This is a lesson I've always known. The journey continues."