The Most Valuable Player from the Super Bowl four years ago says his faith as a Christian was directly assaulted by his own NFL coaches who purportedly said his Bible reading was hurting his on-field performance.
 Kurt Warner poster celebrates Super Bowl XXXIV win |
Kurt Warner was a hero for the St. Louis Rams as he led his team to victory in Super Bowl XXXIV, becoming the only quarterback in championship history to complete more than 400 yards passing in the title game.
But when his performance started to suffer at the beginning of this past season, he was told his benching to backup service resulted – at least partially – from his belief in Jesus.
“I actually had [Rams] coaches say I was reading the Bible too much and it was taking away from my play,” Warner told the Baptist Press. “It was OK when we were winning, but now I was [messing] this thing up? People were saying I had lost my job because of my faith.”
Warner says the bias didn’t surface when the Rams defeated the Tennessee Titans 23-16 in the 2000 Super Bowl.
“We were talking in our [team] Bible study about how we were going to honor God if we got to that final game,” he told BP. “When I was on that stage after the game and I was asked first about a touchdown pass, I just said first things first, ‘Thank you Jesus.'”
According to the report, Warner says his lackluster performance this season has taught him more about his faith than any of his Super Bowl highs.
“You want to say, ‘God, how could You allow this to happen?'” he said. “I thought I was over the fact of being a backup. It was such a shock, but God has allowed me to use this greater platform for Him.
“If you can stand up for your faith when you’re on top, you can stand up for it now that you’re at the bottom.”
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WND Staff