That's Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib opening up about his personal life ... explaining he finally feels comfortable letting the world know he's an openly gay man in the NFL.
"I’ve been meaning to do this for a while now," Nassib said in a social media post Monday, "but I finally feel comfortable getting it off my chest."
The 28-year-old -- who's in the middle of a 3-year, $25 MILLION contract with the Raiders -- noted he's "agonized" over this announcement for 15 years ... but said the support of his friends, family, teammates and coaches made his Monday announcement much easier.