NFL Playoff Stars Glorify God: Ravens' Harbaugh Recites Bible, Niners' Purdy Says It's 'All God'
An NFL coach and several players chose to glorify God by putting their faith on display over the weekend in the divisional playoffs.
After guiding the Baltimore Ravens to their first AFC Championship game appearance in 11 years by beating the Houston Texans 34-10 on Saturday, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh chose to open his postgame press conference by reading a verse from the Bible's Old Testament. He chose to read 1 Chronicles 29:11 to give all of the glory to God.
"I just want to start off with this. It was something that was said to me before the game and is just meaningful to me, so I'm going to share it with you," Harbaugh told the assembled reporters. "Because I think it's the right thing to do."
"It's a verse. 'Greatness, power, glory, victory, and honor belong to You. Because everything in heaven and Earth belongs to You. The kingdom belongs to you, Lord. You are the head and the ruler over everything,'" he read.
"There's an amazing spirit on this team and I just want to kind of give honor and glory where it's due," Harbaugh said.
"I want to give honor and glory where it's due."
— Sports Spectrum (@Sports_Spectrum) January 21, 2024
Ravens coach John Harbaugh reads from scripture and gives glory to the Lord after their divisional playoff win vs Houston.pic.twitter.com/yOJR5yxD5e
Harbaugh, 61, has been outspoken about his Christian faith. The Daily Caller called him: "A fellow soldier of Jesus Christ."
Lamar Jackson and the Ravens
Some other prominent NFL stars from the playoffs also choose to put their faith on display in front of millions.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was captured on camera praying with a teammate before the game with the Texans on Saturday.
Dope shot of Lamar Jackson praying before the game
— TimeoutSPORTS__ (@TimeoutSPORTS3) January 20, 2024
God First pic.twitter.com/wrZwvGI541
Jackson praised God following the Ravens win over the Miami Dolphins on Jan. 4, according to movieguide.com.
"I just thank God for {giving me the health to play}," he said after the game. "I should have started the presser off by thanking God…The last two seasons I wasn't able to fight with my team. I had to do it from the sidelines and just cheer guys on. But I'm grateful for the opportunity."
Jackson, a devout Christian, offered some advice to young people in an exclusive interview on The Wunderkind Show podcast last spring.
"You've got to keep God first," he said. "Pray to God, and you've got to be consistent with God. It's not like making a wish, like seeing a shooting star and just making a wish. You've got to be consistent when you're praying to God…He's gonna hear our prayers."
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The Ravens quarterback told Sports Spectrum in 2019 that his secret to staying humble is praising the Lord.
"I give Him all His praise, the glory, the honor, because of what I am," he told the outlet. "I could have been doing anything. It's crazy. I'll be thinking about it, talking to Him throughout the day, like, 'Man, I appreciate You, I thank You.' Because if you feel like you're bigger than the Lord, that's when all that success dies. It goes away."
Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was also seen praying before the game with the Buffalo Bills Sunday in a nationally televised moment on CBS.
The image of Mahomes kneeling in prayer was shared across social media.
Let it be known that before todays AFC Playoff game Patrick Mahomes took a knee to give glory to God
— Alec Lace (@AlecLace) January 21, 2024
Stand for the Flag
Kneel for God
This is the way!#NFLPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/cXAYaxezv2
Mahomes has spoken about his Christian faith during several interviews and postgame press conferences.
When asked about his Christian faith last year before the Super Bowl, the Kansas City quarterback said his faith impacts his whole life, not just football, according to KMBC-TV.
"My Christian faith plays a role in everything that I do," Mahomes said. "I mean I always ask God to lead me in the right direction and to let me be who I am for his name. He has a role in everything that I do, and obviously, it will be on the huge stage at the Super Bowl that he's given me and I want to make sure I'm glorifying him while I do it."
He later told Sports Spectrum about his ongoing spiritual growth.
"I feel like I've grown in my faith these last few years and I think that's given me more sense of who I am and why I play the game," Mahomes said. "It just kind of relieves the pressure of playing a football game because I know that I'm on that football field to glorify Him before everything. So it's not about winning or losing, it's about going out there and being the best that I can in His name."
Brock Purdy and the 49ers
Before Saturday's playoff game with the Green Bay Packers, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy was interviewed by former 49ers Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young.
Purdy told Young, "My identity isn't in football," during the interview posted to the 49ers' YouTube channel.
"I know who I am, and 'God, if you want me to do great with (football), great. If not, all right, let's go do something else, wherever you need me,'" he said. "That's allowed me to not put all this pressure on myself. It's allowed me to play free. It's allowed me to live my life and keep things simple."
"That's all God. He's got a plan more bigger and more beautiful than I could ever imagine."
EDITOR'S NOTE: In reporting about steps that high-profile individuals may be taking toward God, CBN does not endorse past or current behavior that may not line up with the Word of God. As we report positive developments in celebrities' spiritual journeys, we encourage our readers to pray for anyone and everyone in the news, that the fruit of God would grow in all of our lives.
