Ever since football players started kneeling during the national anthem, the NFL has seen a drastic decrease in viewership as Americans have made it clear that they would rather turn off their televisions than see our flag be disrespected. However, now one NFL team is seeing a massive surge in popularity after the public realized that their players are taking a knee for all the right reasons!
USA Today reported that the Philadelphia Eagles are gaining legions of new fans ever since their quarterback Carson Wentz started opening up about his strong Christian faith. Unlike the players who take a knee during the anthem, Wentz proudly stands for it and only kneels before his games to pray to God!
Backup quarterback Nick Foles, who played in last year’s Super Bowl after Wentz tore his ACL, is also a “brother in Christ,” as are many other players on the team.
“It truly is a brotherhood,” explained Pro Bowl tight end Zach Ertz. “Those guys are holding me accountable. Off the field, I’m holding them accountable. We truly care about each other, we truly care about the growth that each individual has in the word, as believers, as well as friends and family. There are a lot of guys who are truly trying to boost me up and keep me focused on the main thing, which is obviously the word. …”
Defensive end Steven Means played for three other teams before joining the Eagles, and while he has been around other Christian players, he has never seen a bond of faith like the one the Eagles share with each other.
“There is a stronger connection here,” Means said. “It’s another level because we push each other in certain areas that we are flawed at and open ourselves up to each other. We text each other throughout the day making sure that everybody is on the right path and doing the right thing.”
After seeing so many NFL players disrespecting our flag constantly, it’s incredibly refreshing to see players who have their priorities straight. Many other Americans feel the same way, which is why the Eagles are gaining so many new fans.
One such fan was Susan Collesidis, a 72-year-old woman battling an advanced stage of cancer. She never enjoyed football until she saw Wentz talking about his Christian faith. From that point on, she was a huge Eagles fan!
When Wentz heard about Collesidis, he sent her a message that included various powerful Bible verses.
“How much joy I get from watching him and his team play supernatural football every week,” she said.
Sadly, Collesidis passed away two weeks later, but her son-in-law Doug Horton said that Wentz made her last few weeks a whole lot easier.
“The message meant so much to Susan because she admired Carson as a person and believer more than a football player,” he said. “He’s the reason she started caring about sports and she couldn’t wait to watch the Eagles every week.”
What a beautiful thing he did for her. If we can all find a way to incorporate the Word of the Lord in our daily lives and share it with others, we’ll be in a much better place.
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