The Super Bowl is upon us, which means a showcase of remarkable athletic talent will be on display for all to enjoy. Look a little closer, and you'll see some remarkable people as well.
There are plenty of NFL players who aren't great role models, but when Super Bowl XL kicks off in Detroit on February 5, a couple of admirable athletes will be in the spotlight: Pittsburgh running back Jerome Bettis and Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. They have led their respective teams this far because of their humility and selflessness.
Hasselbeck, you'll recall, was the guy who said after winning the overtime coin flip in a 2003 playoff game against Green Bay, “We want the ball, and we're gonna score.” He promptly threw an interception that Green Bay's Al Harris returned for a game-winning touchdown.
He often butted heads with head coach Mike Holmgren, but Hasselbeck eventually learned that the coach is a coach for a reason: he knows better. Hasselbeck started listening to Holmgren, and he became a Pro Bowl quarterback. This past season was Hasselbeck's best, as he passed for 3,459 yards (at a 65.5% completion rate), 24 touchdowns and only nine interceptions. He put aside his renegade attitude and found success hiding beneath it.
Even more uplifting is the story of Bettis, the NFL's fifth-leading rusher all-time. In his 13th and likely final season, “The Bus” is heading to his first Super Bowl (and he's from Detroit). Unlike many stars would be willing to do, Bettis stepped into a backup role this past season to make room for a younger, fleeter Willie Parker. Bettis gained only 327 yards on 100 carries playing mainly as a short-yardage back, although he did have six touchdowns.
Bettis was so willing to do this because two things were more important to him than individual accolades: winning, and mentoring the Steelers' young talent. He set his ego aside for the betterment of the team, both in the short term and long term. He is a man who truly understands that he is not the center of anyone's universe.
It is an attitude we would do well to emulate. Selfless people can indeed be successful; so too can selfish people, but that's a different kind of successful. Individual success is ultimately empty — for who can you share it with? — but group success forms unbreakable bonds that strengthens all and alienates none. Terrell Owens, for instance, has achieved great individual success. But he hasn't done anything to help build team unity. He's like a man holding a rope on one end, and he's dragging everyone else around by it. Bettis is like the man who takes the position along the rope that will serve the group best, and he leads them by allowing them to use their own strengths.
How too often we try to drag everyone in our direction because we're convinced we know better than them. Churches easily make this mistake when the leadership dictates to the members what kind of Bible studies will be held or what kind of service ministries they will support. This can also happen to businesses, families, you name it. An unwillingness by some to accept a lesser role for the greater good has doomed many a promising endeavor.
It'll be hard for me to root against either team in this Super Bowl, because Hasselbeck and Bettis both represent what the NFL needs more of; what society needs more of; what Christianity needs more of. As John the Baptist said, we “must decrease.” Place the focus elsewhere, and you'd be surprised how sharply the important things of life come into focus.
(This article courtesy of Agape Press.)
