Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes said this week his Christian faith gives him peace on the football field and that his goal in life is to “glorify” God in “everything that I do.”
The five-time Pro Bowl selection guided the Chiefs to their third Super Bowl in the past four seasons while leading the NFL in passing yards per game (308), quarterback rating (77.6) and touchdown passes (41).
Kansas City plays Philadelphia Sunday in Super Bowl LVII.
“I feel like I've grown in my faith over these last few years, and I think that's [given] me more of a sense of who I am and why I play the game that I play,” Mahomes said during a Super Bowl news conference.
He was drafted out of Texas Tech in 2017 and quickly became one of the league’s preeminent quarterbacks. He has led 14 game-winning drives during his six-year career, according to Pro Football Reference.
He discussed his faith often during the news conference. Sports Spectrum first reported on Mahomes’ comments.
“My Christian faith plays a role in everything that I do. I always ask God to lead me in the right direction and let me be who I am for His Name,” Mahomes said. “So it has a role in everything that I do. And obviously, we’ll be on a huge stage in the Superbowl that He's given me, and I want to make sure I'm glorifying Him while I do it.”
"I want to make sure I'm glorifying HIM while I do it."@Chiefs QB @PatrickMahomes shares how he wants to glorify God at Super Bowl LVII in Phoenix, AZ! https://t.co/f7XMkTXz3o
— Sports Spectrum (@Sports_Spectrum) February 8, 2023
Video Credit: FSPN pic.twitter.com/ZT8iuL0Iho
Faith, Mahomes said, gives him peace on the field.
“I know that I'm blessed to be in this position,” he said. “... And so to have a faith backing, I know why I'm here – and it's not about winning football games. It is about glorifying Him. ... I have no pressure when I step on that football field, because I know why I'm here. … It just kind of relieves the pressure of playing the football game, because I know that I'm on that football field to glorify Him before everything. And so it's not about winning or losing. It's about going out there and being the best that I can – the best that I can in His Name.”
Mahomes also revealed he has a tattoo that was inspired by the story in Act 20 of Eutychus, a young man who fell out of a window and died while listening to Paul preach. Mahomes said the story is “about being half in and half out on God.”
“You can't be half in and half out,” Mahomes said. “And so that was the Bible verse that kind of stuck with me that kind of told me that I need to be fully in.”
Related:
5 Well-Known Christian Athletes Who Are Playing in Super Bowl LVII
Eagles QB Jalen Hurts, Super Bowl Bound, Says John 13:7 Inspired Him: It's 'My Favorite Verse'
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Kevin C. Cox/Staff
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
