Kevin Maxen, a strength coach for NFL team Jacksonville Jaguars, has come out as gay – the first male coach in major US professional sports to do so.

“I don’t want to feel like I have to think about it anymore. I don’t want to feel like I have to lie about who I am seeing, or why I am living with someone else,” he told Outsports.

“I want to be vocal in support of people living how they want to live, but I also want to just live and not feel fear about how people will react.”

While it is believed Maxen is the first pro US male coach to come out, there are out players in the NFL, with Michael Sam, who was drafted in 2014, and Carl Nassib, who played for Tampa Bay last season, becoming the first openly gay players.

Maxen revealed he’d spoken to Nassib for advice, saying he connected him to Outsports – a site covering LGBTQ issues and personalities in sport.

He said he hoped his decision would “give someone else the strength to accept their own life and take control of their own story”.

Maxen said he had been with his partner Nick for more than two years and that he’d questioned his sexuality since college, where he played as a linebacker for Western Connecticut State University.

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He said his sexuality shouldn’t make a difference to his self esteem or ambition.

“As a Black Jew who has dated both men and women, who has been a strength coach at the highest level of professional football, I’ve learned that how I look, what I believe in, and especially who I am physically or emotionally attracted to should not impact the way I or other people view my worth,” he told Outsports.

“And It should certainly not dictate what I feel I am capable of accomplishing.”

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