The biggest game of the sports year is here: Super Bowl Sunday. The fact that this game takes place on a Sunday seems fitting for this year’s clear theme among the players preparing for the game of their lives.
Amid the countless interviews, many players have said their faith is the most important thing in their lives.
Fortunately, platforms like Sports Spectrum are willing to be on the front lines of bringing faith and sports together. At a time when there appears to be a reawakening regarding the importance of God, the platform is providing a space for the masses to hear the message of Jesus.
Sports Spectrum’s interviews happen alongside the regular interviews conducted by major sports media. And yet, there are consistent themes in the questions. They ask players and coaches how it feels to be part of the Super Bowl experience. Then they ask directly how their faith or their relationship with Jesus has grown or been impacted this year. Their approach is natural and rooted in the belief that faith is not a stale idea but a living knowledge that God is with us through everything.
Players Testify to Faith
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye was asked by Sports Spectrum how he leaned into Christ throughout the year. He said: “It’s a constant in my life. Knowing that the best thing about a football team is that there are other brothers on the team that are followers of Christ … knowing that hearing the Word and spreading the Word is bigger than football.”
Maye noted that many team members gather in the chapel to pray before games. Scripture reading and reflection, he said, help ground him and his teammates in what is most important.
Whether Patriots or Seahawks, players or coaches, all seemed willing to speak about how faith in Christ anchors their lives.
Cooper Kupp, the former Rams Super Bowl champion, said his faith has been critical during the highs and lows of his life and career.
“Hearing lies and things that are spoken over you and into your life has been tough,” Kupp said. “For me, the faith that I have—the belief that I have—I have this belief that the things I was doing were for a greater purpose than myself, and that there was a point behind it. The joy that I felt playing this game—just because it felt like I was made to do it, and being able to glorify God through that—that is gonna make it all worth it. It sustained me through all the highs and all the lows. Truly wouldn’t be here today without it.”
For a player like Kupp, who has seen both the highest achievements and the biggest doubts about his game, faith seems to have been the fuel that carried him through it all.
Patriots punter Bryce Baringer told Sports Spectrum something similar. Baringer said everything is because of—and for—God. He noted that before every game he says a simple prayer: “I ask Him for stillness and calmness … I say, here I am Lord, I come to do your will.”
‘Jesus Is Everything’
Drake Thomas, a linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks, told Sports Spectrum: “Jesus is everything to me. He’s the unshakeable foundation that I lean into in all situations.”
Seahawks gameday captain Brady Russell, who has influenced the faith of several teammates, said the biggest lesson he learned from God this season was patience. For three years he wanted a bigger role in the offense and thought he deserved it.
Yet Russell said that if he had gotten what he wanted, he would not be serving as the Super Bowl gameday captain for his role on special teams. His message: We must trust and be patient with God. Sometimes what we desire isn’t what’s best for us.
Finally, the words of Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson seem to summarize the connection between faith and football for these teams. He noted that New England is one of the least religious parts of the country. Still, he believes God has placed people in the organization who are “filled with the Spirit.” The reason, he said, is simple: “God is using them to draw people to Himself.”
As the world turns to watch the biggest sporting event of the year, may it also learn to bow before the God of the universe—whom these players know as real and necessary for life. Because win or lose the Super Bowl, God remains the same. And as Patriots safety Dell Pettus said, “I may not know the future, but as long as I trust God I’ll be in the right place, and I’ll be appreciative of whatever I get.”
