Regardless of the outcome of the game, several Christian players ultimately will be winners in Sunday’s Super Bowl game. Here are the high-profile Christians to look for.
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs. The quarterback credited God moments after his team’s 23-20 victory over Cincinnati in the AFC Championship, saying an ankle injury nearly prevented him from playing. “I wanna thank God,” he told CBS during the national broadcast. “He healed my body this week. To battle through that, he gave me the strength to be out here.”
Two years ago, before the Chiefs’ Super Bowl game against Tampa Bay, Mahomes said faith was key to his life.
“It guides you as you know why you’re playing the game,” he said. “You know that obviously you want to win, but at the end of the day you’re doing it for something that’s much bigger than yourself and you’re trying to represent something that’s much bigger than yourself. I think having that confidence and having that trust lets you go out there and be who you are and play freely.”
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Hurts
Jalen Hurts, Eagles. Philadelphia’s starting quarterback told CBS Sports earlier this year that “God is everything, and he’s worthy of praise.”
“You have to put him in the center of everything that you do,” Hurts said. “And that’s what I believe. I’ve been blessed to grow, learn things and just mature. And I know God has been there the whole entire way.”
He recently posted a photo of himself on Instagram in an Eagles uniform, kneeling in prayer. Hurts wrote, “He Who Kneels Before God Can Stand Before Any Man.” His Instagram bio reads, “In God I Trust.”
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After the Eagles’ victory over San Francisco in the NFC Championship, Hurts quoted scripture during a post-game news conference. “I went through a lot of stuff in college and it kind of stuck with me — John 13:7. ‘You may not know now, but later you will understand.’”
Brown
A.J. Brown, Eagles. Brown led Philadelphia in receiving yards this season.
“I had plans, and God had other plans,” he said. “I try not to lean on my own understanding. I read the Bible a lot, because that’s how I fight my problems. I’m not trying to stand up here and be a perfect guy, because I’m not; nobody is. But I just lean heavily on my faith and try to let him direct my paths.”
He said “Romans 8:18” is his favorite Bible verse.
Nick Bolton, Chiefs. The linebacker from the University of Missouri led the Chiefs in total tackles (180) and solo tackles (108) this season.
Bolton
“God presented this opportunity to go out here and play football, and so I’m just going to take advantage of it,” Bolton said. “I kind of see it as an opportunity to go out here and play football. I’ve been doing it since I was young, and so it’s getting confidence from these guys to come in every single day and let me put my best foot forward by giving me that confidence.”
During Super Bowl week, Bolton said he felt blessed. “Just a lot of gratitude,” he said. “How much I’ve grown as a person, as an individual, a football player, a teammate, a follower of Christ.”
–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice
