Maryland politician and minister Emmett C. Burns Jr., in a letter obtained by Yahoo! Sports on Thursday, has demanded that the Baltimore Ravens halt linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo from publicly expressing his support for gay marriage. While the Ravens declined comment on the letter to The Washington Post, Ayanbadejo wrote on Twitter: "Football is just my job it's not who I am. I am an American before anything. And just like every American I have the right to speak!!!"

Here is a copy of the letter: