NFL Warriors Fight It Out Sundays

On Sunday mornings La’Roi Glover hits his knees. On Sunday during the NFL season the Saints’ nose tackle hits quarterbacks.

Pounding players into the turf, knocking them down, knocking them out of the game, breaking up plays or even breaking bones is not a problem for the man who follows the Prince of Peace.

“He asks me to be a mighty warrior for God and the Saints ask me to be a mighty warrior on the field,” Glover said. “I think Christians try to live good lives and that includes working hard. When I go after somebody on the football field, I’m just working hard.”

NFL teams often talk about taking out opponents, and on any given Sunday injured players have to be carted off the field. But these athletes have no trouble reconciling the teachings of Christianity and the practice of a violent sport.

“Even going back to the Bible . . . God told Israel to go out and fight battles,” said Green Bay’s Reggie White, an ordained, nondenominational minister since age 17. “But, in football, our purpose is not to utterly destroy, it’s to do what we can to try and win.”

Tennessee Oilers 11-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman Bruce Matthews said he sees no conflict between his Christian ideas and the violent sport he plays.

“God’s blessed me to be able to play this game and in him blessing me I know I’m to go out and do the best I can,” Matthews said. “What this game is about is going out and hitting people and doing the best you can. My job is to knock people around so we can score touchdowns. It’s real simple. He wants our best, so there’s never a conflict.”

Atlanta Falcons fullback Bob Christian hits as hard as he can in every game and expects his opponents to do the same. And, as long as athletes stay within the rules, a thorough beating does not go against the word of the Lord.

“For instance, you had the George Foreman-Evander Holyfield fight a while back. They were beating the snot out of each other, literally, for 12 rounds,” Christian said. “After the fight, they were saying they love each other. And they do. They have love for one another, even though they just messed up each other’s face. Same thing with football. There’s really no conflict.”

Football players admit many people might find it hard to understand how devout Christians can want to knock the block off an opponent every Sunday. Quarterback Randall Cunningham said they need look no further than the Bible.

“The Bible talks about let us fight the good fight,” Cunningham said. “When Paul was talking to Timothy he said, ‘It’s a fight.’ There are going to be times when people don’t understand and they’re not happy about it, but I don’t push it on them. I just give them what’s on my heart in a loving way.”

Perhaps no team devotes more time to their faith than the New Orleans Saints. In addition to pre- and post-game prayer, there is weekly Bible study for players and daily Bible verses to memorize.

Any player or coach can challenge another to repeat the verse. Those that can’t must kick in a dollar to a kitty and the money is later used for charitable work.

The Saints may not be known for winning, but many of them have become well known for their community work in New Orleans.

Quarterback Danny Wuerffel works with youth in the Desire Housing Development--one of the city’s poorest and most violent. He’s also helped raise almost $2 million for a community center there and has donated $50,000.

But the many Christian activities do not extend to turning the other cheek on the field, Wuerffel said.

“I don’t know why people see Christians as soft,” Wuerffel said. “They fought some of the toughest battles ever.”

If it comes right down to it, Christian athletes are actually the most formidable, those professing their faith say.

Opposing quarterbacks may not believe it, but White said he never goes into a game with the intent to hurt someone. He does, however, look for any opportunity to knock their chin straps loose.

Football, White points out, is a tough, aggressive game.

“I must admit that over our lifetime that Christians have presented themselves as extremely weak and wimpish,” White said. “But Jesus was not wimpish.”

And neither are devout Christians who happen to play in the NFL.