Commanders' Jayden Daniels gave glory to God
Quarterback Jayden Daniels received a postgame interview after the Washington Commanders defeated the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night. The first two questions allowed him to talk about his fantastic performance.
Daniels could have spoken about all of his hard work, the grueling hours on the practice field and studying film, the seemingly endless running, throwing, and repping. But instead, Daniels deflected praise to his teammates and the Lord.
“Give credit to my o-line, give credit to my receivers and running backs, and most importantly give credit to God,” Daniels said on ESPN.
Daniels completed 21 of 23 passes for 91 percent, setting an all-time NFL rookie record in the 38-33 victory. When asked what the record meant to him, Daniels said, “That’s crazy. Give glory to God. I wouldn’t be in this position without him, so I can’t do nothing without him.”
My viewpoint on these types of postgame comments has changed over the years. At first, it encouraged me to hear an athlete on a national stage take time to talk about the Lord. But occasionally, I wondered if certain athletes’ words were genuine. Christians can sometimes fall into that trap. We get caught with the plank in our eye as we try to catch a speck in someone else’s eye.
The Bible verses that helped my problem were Mark 9:38-40:
John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the one who is not against us is for us.”
… and Matthew 12:30:
“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”
There is no neutral ground with Jesus. His words in Mark 9:40 and Matthew 12:30 show the impossibility of neutrality in our relationship with him. If we are not with him, we must be against him. So an athlete who steps into the spotlight and confesses his faith states himself as a follower of Christ.
Still, there can be confusion about what it means to point to the Lord after times of victory. It’s not a matter of saying God helped a certain team win, or at least that shouldn’t be the mindset. Rather, it should be a thankfulness that through victory, God gave this athlete a chance to proclaim the name of Jesus. This could happen in the same way through a loss. Praising God should be independent of whether a game is won or lost. After all, the simple ability to play the game is a gift from God.
So to Jayden Daniels, I would say, “Keep up the good work.” Keep completing passes, leading your team, and being a good role model. And when you and your team fall short, lift up the name of Jesus in the same manner as after a victory.