I m 5 11 , weigh 175 pounds on a good day, run 40 yards in 4.

6 seconds, have
never even tried to bench 225lbs, and have never been able to say I love
playing the game of football. So, how did I manage to stay in the NFL for eight
years and play a total of twenty-three years of organized football?

Well, the short answer is Jesus. But the long answer; I ll take a stab at lling you in on.
Hang with me.

As I tried to think about where the courage to go across the middle as an undersized
slot receiver was born, it brought me back to my childhood. My older brother, Gabe
who is just twenty months older than meand I used to play this great game in my
parents bedroom as kids. My dad would stand with a football about 5 steps back from
the foot of his bed, while Gabe and I opposed each other about ve steps back from
either side of the bed. On my dad s signal we would sprint toward the bed, diving
directly at each other, all while my dad laid the perfect pass out there to ensure a
tough catch for whichever of us was more willing to ignore the sure contact. Great
game right!? And even better parenting.

My dad has been a college coach for more than twenty years, bouncing around U.S.
campuses and now nding himself at Tulsa University. When I say that I never loved
playing football, there s no bitterness toward this game that has had such a positive
inuence on my family, nor is there any annoyance toward being its spectator. The
statement has less to do about how football makes me feel and more to do with how
careful I am with the word love . In short, I d rather reserve that particular word for
human interactions and for worshipping my Father in Heaven. When someone asks me
if I love my car, for example, my stomach turns and I say Oh yeah, I really like it with
a faux smile and exaggerated head nod.

But, how did I play a sport for twenty-six years that I didn t love ? Sounds miserable,
right?

Though I joked a bit earlier about my dad s parenting skills, that s all it was. My mom
and dad bothBrian and Tifney Norwoodgot me hip to being a lover of people
and of Jesus, whether they know it or not. The pleases , thank yous and let me help
you with thats along with the love, gracefulness, and mercy they showed me, showed
me Jesus in action. That introduction to Jesus completely changed the trajectory of
my life, the motives of my life, and ultimately my ability to even call it my life at all.

I had never really dened my relationship with football growing up. As I remember it, I
always enjoyed playing and was always good at it. It was my senior year in college that
one of my friends, in the middle of a party, asked me why I played football, in the
most non-offensive way that a question like that could be asked. She just wanted to
know. The rst words out of my mouth, accompanied by a chuckle were, well, I
denitely don t love it. Yikes. I went on to say that God had blessed me with the
talent to play, so it would be selsh of me not to play and play my best as to honor
Him. I wonder if she remembers asking me that?

That question and answer has stuck with me ever since. Unfortunately, that answer
sticks a little better when things aren t going too well. Like when I didn t get drafted in
2009 (it s OK you re playing to honor God), or when I got cut by the Browns the rst
time (it s OK just honor God), or when I got cut by the Eagles (honor God), or
sprained my foot, or when I got cut by the browns the second time, or cut by the
Buccaneers, or tore my ACL, or muffed two punts on national TVit s ok you re
playing to honor God.

For me, it was more difcult to honor Him in the midst of my worldly successes than in
my worldly failures.

It could take as little as three catches in a Sunday afternoon game, to shift my mind
from honoring God to honoring these bottles I was about to pop on West 6th street
that night. My NFL career, and life to this point in general, has been an endless cycle
of pride to humility and humility to pride. I can only hope that the periods of pride
continue to be shorter, fewer, and further apart as I get closer and closer to Jesus.

At the most obedient and humble time of my NFL career, I had been injured, cut
twice, out of football for a year, and completely dependent on the strength of God to
carry me to Denver for a tryout. When the Broncos decided to sign me, and I soon
tore my ACL trying to catch a pass from 'the' Peyton Manning, I chalked it up to God
saying I needed more humility to prepare me for something big. My ACL tear gave me
an opportunity to meet and get engaged to my now-wife, Aleah, and to begin to see a
future with kids, which I had all but given up on. But, when it came to football, I knew
that God had something in store for me. And I was terried of it.

After recovering from the ACL and being out of football for two and a half seasons, I
lined up on the rst play of the game and 2015 season against the Baltimore Ravens.
Breaking the huddle in Mile High Stadium with Peyton Manning at the helm and DT
and Emmanuel Sanders anking the outside WR spots was unrealand I had a feeling
that God was about to give me an opportunity to make good on my promise to honor
Him. As the story goes, we go to and win the Super Bowl that season, and I, of all
people, set a Super Bowl record for the longest punt return ever.

Before that punt return, I was sitting on the bench with Emmanuel Sanders, as I
sometimes did while the defense was on the eld. He was the starting punt returner
for that game and we got on the topic of me going back there for the next punt return
instead of him (I won t go into detail). But, we agreed that he would say something to
the special teams coach and get the OK for me to head back therenormal protocol
for us that season. Coach D s call on the eld was for it to be an attempt to block the
punt, meaning, as a punt returner, I wouldn t have much blocking for a return.
Needless to say we didn t block the punt, I blacked out catching the ball without fair
catching it and I came to as I was running down the sideline thinking that I was about
to score a touchdown!

And that s that.

That 61 yard, non-touchdown punt return and that Super Bowl game will give me a
platform to share the good news of Jesus for the rest of my life. Whether it s talking
with old friends, sharing on social media, interacting at a youth football camp, or
standing up in front of a church congregation, the platform has been created.

Of course, there s another side to my life and football career, as I previously stated,
that directly opposes the obedience and humility of that Super Bowl story. As quickly
as I took the podium after the Super Bowl to shout Jesus name as many times as I
could, I began to think that I had done something pretty specialthat, you know
what, I am a pretty good football player. The way I approached free agency that off
season and the way I approached the next season was like someone on a mission to
make a pro bowlwhich, for me, wasn t a good thing. It meant that I was getting in
the way of any of the good things God had for me.

Pride.

If you want to block yourself from God s blessings be proud.

Unfortunately, we tend to think that worldly success (i.e. money, nice car, attractive
signicant other) equals God s blessings or even signies favor with God. Although,
those could be a part of it, it could also be quite the opposite. God s blessings often
times look nothing like worldly successjust take a stroll through the beatitudes in
Matthew 5.

For me, pride has shown itself in all types of ways throughout my career. In one game
last season, my pride got torn to pieces! Throughout the week leading up to this
game, we installed a punt return play where no one really blocks for me. Lol.
Obviously, this was what one would call a trick play and though I had major
reservations about doing the play in the game, I kept my mouth shutletting my pride
tell myself that I got this. Late in November, we had a Sunday night football game
and Murphy s Law was in full effectfor me, at least. After one, muffed punt return
that I was able to get back and keep possession in my team s favor, we later decided
to call the punt return play that caused me a bit of apprehension throughout the
week. The ball was punted, I caught it, and with little blocking I got hit pretty good in
the side of the neck and head. Pride even showed itself on that playhaving made a
mistake earlier, pride forced me to catch the punt and try to execute the play,
although, I could tell there wasn t going to be time to make it work I should have
waved for a fair catch. At the end of the play the trainers and medical staff noticed
that I got to my feet with some trouble establishing my center of gravity. As we see
players do every week, I headed to the locker room to be evaluated for a concussion.

My pride wasn t done yet. My pride wasn t going to let a muffed punt and failed play
dene that game for me. Plus my pride wouldn t let the back up punt returner go out
there, who I knew did not get much practice at the job that week. My team needed
me and I was going to be sure to be the one to get back out there and turn this all
around. My pride gets me back out on to the eld a quarter later, perhaps, and my
rst play back out on the eld from the locker room is another punt returnmy
pride s chance to redeem itself.

If you re a fan of the Broncos you know what happens next. I drop another punt, get
hit in the head again in the process, and this time our opponent recovers the ball. As I
get to my feet trying to regain my bearings, the rst thought that came to my mind
was that, Jordan, you need to pray. [Yes in the third person, because I was outside
of myself.] Before, I knew it I was being shoved to the sideline by my own teammate
and may even have had 70,000+ fans booing methat latter, I don t know because my
senses were so scattered. My pride had set myself up for ultimate humiliation and
humbling. Both of which I needed. I made my way to the sideline, took a knee in
prayer, starting and ending with thanking God as I always do.

The rest of that game, was much of the same for me. I don t recall doing anything
right and do recall us losing that very important conference game. The rest of that
season kept moving forward, and I did what I would do whenever God nally got my
attention that my agenda isn t His agendaI leaned on my wife and family, I dove into
the Word of God, I prayed, and I tried to get to know Jesus better.

He made it clear that I didn t have to keep acting like I loved the game of football. He
made it clear that the game gave me and will continue to give me opportunities to
honor Him. It lead me to meeting my wife in Denver, getting a family started here, and
nding a place that I can call home after years and years of moving around the
country.

All of that said, I am excited to be able to call myself an NFL alumnus.

If you ve read this far, I d like to contradict the world with some quick-hitting
encouragements based on my experiences and my faith walk:

1. It s OK to doubt yourself.
2. Love people, not the stuff that people have created.
3. Don t mistake your job for your identity.
4. Be proud if you want to be. Be humble because He wants you to be.
5. Your feelings and emotions can and will fool you. What does God speak into your
heart while you are the most sober-minded and content?
If you re interested in me elaborating on any of those points just shoot me a message
or emailI d love to chat. In fair warning, my answer to most questions revert back to
my aim to honor my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Big thanks to: My parents, siblings Gabe, Levi, Brianna, Zaccariah, my wife Aleah,
Coaches Tyke Tolbert and Gary Kubiak, Reggie Hodges, Jason Avant, Pro Athletes
Outreach, Joe Paterno, JB Gerald, Mike McQueary, Kenny Carter, Peter Schaffer,
David Hutchinson, Dan Ward, Jamil Allen, Deon Butler, HS Coaches Drew Frank, Dave
Lintal and Gasporato.

Jordan Norwood