Isn't there a picture of him in a gay bar stripped to the waist partying? Maybe he made this announcement to check-mate the impact of that photo. Otherwise, why not just go through the draft and answer any questions discretely and honestly about his sexual preferences, when and if they came up?
I'm sure I encounter people every day who are gay. My attitude is I won't bother you with stories about my sexual preferences, please don't burden me with yours.
Because technically a prospective employer isn’t supposed to ask about that and there was a stink at last year’s combine because some teams allegedly (don’t think it ever was proven) asked some players if they were gay. Coming out when he did ends all problems, it won’t be a secret he’s hoping the background check misses, the story will be played out by the time the combine starts, nobody has to ask any pointed questions or wonder. Everybody gets to move on and evaluate his football skills.