Ex-NFL QB Claps Back After Rapinoe Says Her Injury Is 'Proof' God Doesn't Exist
Now-former women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe could use a change of perspective to go with her change of career — and an ex-NFL quarterback would be happy to help.
The country’s most insufferable athlete — of either sex — is making headlines again for matters that have nothing to do with her on-the-field activities after an injury ended her final game as a professional soccer player when play had barely begun.
Rapinoe chose to use the moment as some kind of “proof” of her own atheistic inclinations, but another former athlete is making headlines of his own — with a classic, and classy, response.
“Wow. For those seeing this,” retired quarterback Devlin Hodges wrote on a social media post with a video of Rapinoe’s post-match news conference. [Warning: The video contains edited vulgar language that some viewers may find offensive.]
“Just know there is a God and he has wonderful plans for those that believe in him!”
Wow. For those seeing this.
Just know there is a God and he has wonderful plans for those that believe in him! https://t.co/RmkED8eXGh
— Devlin Hodges (@DevlinHodges10) November 13, 2023
That’s a message Rapinoe needs to hear.
As much of the sports world knows by now, the tarnished former star of the Women’s National Team star and left-wing celebrity raised the hackles of many religious Americans with her vulgar take on the apparent Achilles tendon tear that sent her to the sidelines in the opening minutes of Saturday night’s National Women’s Soccer League championship game.
Injuries happen in all sports — from the elementary school level to the elite — and no man or woman of good will would wish them on anyone. But Rapinoe’s reaction in a post-match interview strained the good will of just about anyone who heard it.
“I’m not a religious person or anything,” she said. “And if there was a God, like, this is proof that there isn’t. This is f***ed up. So, yeah, it just, it’s f***ed up. You guys.”
There were plenty of commenters who’ve claimed that Rapinoe was maybe joking, possibly just dealing with the stress of the moment — but if it was a “joke,” it carried a ring of narcissistic conviction to it.
And the ignorance behind it is astounding. Even nonbelievers who’ve given even half a thought to the idea of God beyond the most immediate moments of their lives would have an inkling that an injury at an athletic event in the year of our Lord 2023 has literally no bearing on the question of whether there’s an actual Infinite Being and Creator of the Universe.
He even has a plan for @MeganRapinoe
— KAY-BEE (@mkeithbryant) November 14, 2023
Hodges — known by the nickname “Duck” — should know something about adversity in athletics. A graduate of Alabama’s Samford University, he entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2019, as CBS reported at the time of his retirement.
He was then waived by the team before being brought back to its practice squad, promoted to the regular roster, then starting quarterback after injuries to Steelers star Ben Roethlisberger and Roethlisberger’s backup.
His eight games for the Steelers were pretty much the highlight of his pro career, though he signed briefly with the Los Angeles Rams and also played in the Canadian Football League before hanging it up for good in 2022. That’s the career of a man who knows he’s far, far better than average at the game of football, but still not good enough for a long-term career with the best.
If he weren’t dating country star Lainey Wilson, it’s a good chance he would have faded completely out of the public eye by now.
But he hasn’t, and his post about Rapinoe drew plenty of support.
Thank you, Devlin! Thank you for showing me another miracle, another shining message from God. You have made my day today, you have given me hope. I love your faith, your humility, and your openness. I love God!!! We need more men like you. God bless you!! pic.twitter.com/Jzgg7OOU3jsporreoli
— PatriotPureblood (@PatriotPureblo1) November 15, 2023
Thank you Duck!! God is good-all the time! And while my faith tells me to forgive her comments, it will certainly take me longer than others to do so.
— ChristheDigiMktgDad (@DigiMktgDad) November 14, 2023
hope god leads her towards being a better person
— . (@ApollosJuice) November 13, 2023
It might come as news to Ms. Rapinoe, but the long story of humanity on earth doesn’t start and stop with women’s soccer.
The long, rich history of religion reaches into the mists of time, flashed in eternal illumination with the greatest event in human history 2,000 years ago, and projects into the unseeable future.
The greatest philosophers of the world — East and West — have pondered the imponderable, producing volumes on the question of God’s existence. The most divinely talented artists in history have produced masterpieces of biblically themed works dating back to the Roman Empire. Entire cultures have been devoted to the construction of breathtaking cathedrals, magnificent mosques, temples and shrines devoted to the worship and understanding of the Almighty.
Literally countless billions of men and women have lived their lives on this earth in the absolute certainty that there is a Judge of the World. For Christians, that sure belief comes with the eternal comfort that “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
The world didn’t stop turning because one intensely annoying woman popped her leg on a soccer pitch somewhere. And for Rapinoe to dismiss all that because of a split-second event at San Diego State’s Snapdragon Stadium isn’t so much blasphemy as a bad, bad joke — and not one she would have intended.
She could use some perspective, all right. And it’s a good bet Devlin Hodges could give it to her.
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