NFL players should be better role models
My son plays tackle football on the fourth-grade team for his Catholic school. Yes, I hear the plethora of moms yelling at me for letting my son play tackle football. Yes, I know there can be injuries. Yes, I worry. But my son loves football more than anything in life. He and I throw a football in the yard together for hours, often until the sun goes down. We play, together. It’s not a screen, or a video game, just football.
After two seasons, I’ve realized there’s no other sport that can teach my son as much about being a good teammate and a good person. I’m proud to watch his team on that field day after day, week after week, playing hard to win for their school and for each other, literally picking each other up after being knocked down. After the final game this season, one boy was crying because he’d dreamed of playing football on this team with his friends ... and now the season is over.
I’m disappointed with the headlines about our Steelers. Maybe the team needs to be reminded how much football means to this city and how much we love our players. Maybe Antonio Brown needs to be reminded that the eyes of our youth are on him, idolizing every move he makes. He inspires the dreams that fill our boys’ heads; he shapes our boys’ futures. Please don’t teach them about entitlement because of talent or fame. Teach them about work ethic, teamwork, gratitude to God and treating teammates and coaches with respect. He is a hero to my boy. Please don’t go where we can’t follow.
The NFL isn’t about athletes playing for each other anymore. After one of the worst “NFL Black Mondays,” a quarter of the league is looking for a new head coach. Perhaps we all need reminded of what the NFL used to represent: a city, a team, a family. Perhaps we need to remember what is was like to be a 10year-old playing football in the yard until sundown. It’s those boys who remind us what it means to play for each other. It’s those boys who remind us of what football is all about.
KERRI HOPKINS
Bethel Park