Seattle Seahawks And 49ers Photo Sparks Discussion About Religion In The NFL

The Seattle Seahawks team is a dominant force in the NFL with plenty of players, personality, and skills. But the team’s quarterback, Russell Wilson, has made his mark on the team with his devotion to religion and God. For years, fans of the Seahawks have seen him thank God for his talents and prayed before the games. It’s no secret that he credits his belief in God and religion for his opportunity to play in the NFL. For a while, it seemed like fans didn’t really care that he would display his religious beliefs as much as he does.

Maybe the recent influx of politics in the league has people talking about religion now. It surfaced this weekend after Seattle took on their division rival, the San Francisco 49ers. According to a new tweet shared by the San Francisco 49ers, some of the team members are kneeling along with some of Seattle Seahawks players. The photo has the word “family” written on it. Some fans immediately saw the photo as a way of using religion to promote the league. Others pointed out that religion does not equal family and these kinds of posts push out fans who are not religious.

Football is family. pic.twitter.com/fauBwkvJlM

— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 27, 2017

“You guys continue to promote religion… Religion does not equal family,” one follower wrote to the official San Francisco 49ers Twitter account, while another person wrote, “Or maybe it’s just cool to see opponents in an up-till-recently-heated rivalry joining together in solidarity like this, whether it be for religion, for an injured player, for an off-field cause, or anything else.”

It was pointed out that it made some people feel awkward, as fans who are not religious feel odd that family is being portrayed as a religion in the NFL. Of course, NFL fans may have plenty of religious followers, some of which aren’t represented in the NFL at all. Perhaps people are a bit more sensitive because of the political drama that has played out over the past couple of weeks. President Donald Trump has called for players to be fired after they kneeled during the national anthems. He has also criticized owners and coaches for not doing more to punish players, who were using the NFL platform to speak their minds.

The Seattle Seahawks will play this upcoming Sunday as they take on the Philadelphia Eagles. The San Francisco 49ers will take on the Chicago Bears on Sunday, as well.

[Featured Image by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images]