NFL Legend Matthew Slater Encourages Young Athletes to Find Identity in Christ, Not Sports
- Michael Foust Crosswalk Headlines Contributor
- Updated Jun 21, 2024
NFL legend Matthew Slater says his success is due to the goodness of God and that he’d encourage young athletes to remember their identity is in Christ, not sports. The three-time Super Bowl champion and 10-time Pro Bowler with the New England Patriots was the Sports Impact recipient at the 2024 K-Love Fan Awards, which recognizes an athlete or coach each year who has stayed true to their faith amid success.
Slater retired this year after 16 seasons and currently is an advisor to the Patriots. He is considered one of the best special team players in NFL history.
“Stay true to the seeds that God has planted in your heart -- they’re going to be tested, they’re going to be talked about,” he said when asked what advice he would give young Christian athletes.
“Be true to who God made you to be. Stay authentic. Keep the main thing, the main thing. One of the challenges that comes with being a professional athlete is identity. And I think for a lot of people, they like to place their identity in what they do, especially when the world is telling you how great you are and how much they enjoy the entertainment that football brings. Remember, your identity is in Christ, and He has you where you are so that you can continue to be an ambassador for Him in every arena that you’re in.
“Stay rooted in who you are in Christ,” he added. “Because that’s going to be ultimately what sustains you well beyond the game.”
Slater grew up in an athletic home. His father, Jackie Slater, is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Matthew made a name for himself at UCLA, where he earned first-team All-Pac-10 before being drafted in the fifth round by the Patriots.
Receiving the K-Love Sports Impact honor, he said, made him uncomfortable.
“I don’t want the focus to be on the story. I want it to be on the Author,” he said. “I hope that the people that have been around me understand that none of the credit should go to me. My journey has been a very unique one. And there’s no way of explaining it without saying that it’s all due to the goodness and mercy of Jesus.”
He and his wife launched a nonprofit organization, the Slater Family Network Foundation, to help meet needs in the New England area.
“We’re trying to show people the love of Christ, tell people about the love of Christ, and just be there any way that we can,” he said.
Photo Credit: ©SWN/Jason Davis for K-LOVE Fan Awards
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
