Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten has become a model of stability, security and super-sized plays.
But to achieve his many NFL honors and to earn the respect of teammates and fans, Witten had to overcome unbelievable odds as a neglected child to become a true champion on and off the field…
This story was published in the Fall 2011 print issue of Sports Spectrum magazine. Click HERE to read the remainder of our “From The Archives” story on Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten.
Ben Roethlisberger played 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers as their starting quarterback. He is a two-time Super Bowl champion and is ranked fifth in NFL all-time passing yards and eighth in all-time passing touchdowns.
Today on the podcast, we welcome Big Ben back to the show with Matt Forte to talk about the state of the QB position in the NFL, adapting to his post-playing career, growing as a parent, and staying rooted in Christ.
>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<
Happy 9th #Birthday, Bodie! 🎂🥳🎁🎈
Nine years of awesome adventures! Wishing you a super fun and special day, and a great year ahead! pic.twitter.com/7VcvgLUYTq
— BigBen7.com (@_BigBen7) May 26, 2025
RELATED PODCASTS:
– Ben Roethlisberger on Sports Spectrum in 2022
– Antwaan Randle El, Former NFL Wide Receiver
Trey Smith is a member of the Kansas City Chiefs on their offensive line. He was selected in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Chiefs and has been a starter since his rookie year. He was a member of two Super Bowl championship teams and in 2024 was named to his first Pro Bowl.
Today on the podcast, Trey Smith shares his inspiring journey of overcoming adversity, the impact of faith and family, and the importance of resilience in the face of challenges. He reflects on his medical struggles in college, the loss of his mother, and how his faith has guided him through difficult times. Trey emphasizes the power of community, prayer and the lessons learned from his experiences, ultimately encouraging others to find strength in their own journeys.
>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<
65 earned his first Pro Bowl nod 😤
Well deserved, @treysmith. pic.twitter.com/MM8aaNppFu
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) January 3, 2025
RELATED PODCASTS:
– Marcellus and Stephanie Casey, Kansas City Chiefs team chaplain
– James Winchester, Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman
In his 37 years on earth, Tim Tebow has worn many hats: NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner, national champion, College Football Hall of Famer, pro baseball player, author, speaker, producer, television personality, philanthropist.
Now, Tebow can add one more title, and it’s perhaps his most cherished: father.
>> Subscribe to Sports Spectrum Magazine for more stories where sports and faith connect <<
Tebow and his wife, Demi-Leigh, joyfully announced in an Instagram post that they welcomed their first child, Daphne Reign Tebow, into the world on Sunday.
View this post on Instagram
In a follow-up post revealing their daughter’s name, Demi-Leigh shared the importance of the names Daphne and Reign. Daphne was her great aunt’s name, a woman who served as a grandmother figure to Demi-Leigh growing up. Meanwhile, Reign has spiritual significance.
“[Reign is] inspired by a precious little girl Tim and I have loved deeply for years,” she wrote. “Her story has shaped our hearts in ways I can’t even begin to explain. But more than anything, her name reminds us that when you’re adopted into God’s family, you become a child of the King. You were made to rule and reign — not in power, but in purpose, love, and identity.
“So here she is — our daughter. Our answered prayer. Daphne Reign Tebow — created in the image of God. Royalty as His princess. Our biggest prayer over her is to reign in God’s purpose for her life.”
View this post on Instagram
As one of the most outspoken followers of Christ in modern sports history, Tim began to post about the image of God on his Instagram and X accounts in the wake of Daphne’s birth, possibly inspired by the image of God he now holds in his hands.
“If [the term ‘son of God’ is] used throughout history as a term for kings and for monarchs, then it is a term for royalty,” Tebow explained in a clip of one of the many sermons he’s delivered, which he posted on X on Wednesday. “What if our God loves you so much that when He says you were made in His image, He’s saying, ‘I love you so much that I see you as royalty’?”
For most of history, the phrase “made in the image of” was reserved for kings and monarchs. But in Genesis, God gives that title to all of us. Think about that…
The God of the universe looks at you and says: “I see you with royal worth.” Not because of what you’ve done, but… pic.twitter.com/gqmeCtD4uM
— Tim Tebow (@TimTebow) July 9, 2025
“I used to think being made in God’s image was just a label we wore. But it’s so much more than that,” Tebow wrote in another post. “You are His image, part of His design, part of His story. That truth changes everything. Your worth isn’t something you wear. It’s who you are.”
View this post on Instagram
Tebow first rose to prominence as a college football player at Florida from 2006-2009, becoming a media sensation for frequently sharing publicly about his faith in Christ. With the Gators, he won two national championships (2006, 08) and the 2007 Heisman Trophy. The Denver Broncos drafted him No. 25 overall in 2010, and he spent two seasons with the franchise. Primarily a backup as a rookie, Tebow became the team’s starter in 2011. He helped turn that season around as the Broncos advanced to the postseason and won a playoff game. He was traded to the Jets that offseason and was released after a year in New York.
In 2016, Tebow announced that he would pursue a career as a professional baseball player. Despite not playing organized baseball since his junior year of high school, Tebow impressed scouts enough that the New York Mets signed him to a minor-league deal. He played in the Mets’ minor-league system before formally announcing his retirement from baseball in February 2021.
When his former college football coach, Urban Meyer, was hired by the Jacksonville Jaguars ahead of the 2021 season, Tebow signed a one-year contract with the team. His brief attempt to return to the NFL as a tight end came to a close when he was released in the preseason.
Tebow’s days tossing touchdowns and hammering home runs may have passed, but his days changing diapers and singing lullabies have just begun. He’s proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ with millions watching around the world, and he’s trusted his Heavenly Father to equip him with the words to speak at those times.
Now as a father — a role he’s never had before — he will trust his Heavenly Father to guide him, just as He’s always done.
>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<
RELATED STORIES:
— Tim Tebow, Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters get married in South Africa
— Demi & Tim Tebow set out to use platforms to combat human trafficking
— Florida legend Tim Tebow selected to College Football Hall of Fame: ‘All glory to God’
— Tim Tebow celebrates ‘kings and queens’ at Night to Shine events
— Tim Tebow discusses ‘greatest trade in the history of the world’ in Easter sermon
Former Ohio State Buckeyes TreVeyon Henderson and Gee Scott Jr. are looking forward to their first NFL training camp with the New England Patriots later this month, where they will prepare to make an immediate impact on the field. Yet they haven’t waited until September to make an impact in the Massachusetts community they now call home, or in the Ohio community that molded them into who they are.
Both players provided spiritual leadership for the Buckeyes’ faith-fueled national championship team and have continued to find ample opportunities to share their faith in Christ since joining the Patriots.
>> Subscribe to Sports Spectrum Magazine for more stories where sports and faith connect <<
Scott — a tight end who signed with New England as an undrafted free agent — and three of his Patriots teammates joined community members and police officers at a Faith Night hosted by Bethel AME Church in Boston on May 30. Three weeks later, Scott and Henderson (a running back and the No. 38 overall pick) were both guest speakers at a “Revival” worship night organized by the Duxbury High School Bible Club, about an hour southeast of Boston. The players closed the night by delivering powerful testimonies of faith in Christ to a crowd of more than 400.
Their community outreach has extended outside the Boston area as well. The week after the Duxbury event, Henderson was at Storyside Church in Bellville, Ohio, where he reportedly declined an appearance fee. His reason? “My salvation is free and so am I.”
Prior to his final season at Ohio State last August, Henderson was a guest on the Sports Spectrum Podcast. He shared in the episode how he came to faith in college and why he chose to return for one more year rather than enter the 2024 NFL Draft.
“When I met Jesus, He filled me with the love that I’d been looking for in football and money and my family and women,” the three-time All-Big Ten selection said on the podcast. “He gave me the joy that I’d been searching for. … He filled me with happiness that I was looking for. What my heart was craving, what my heart needed — Jesus, He filled me with it. He gave it to me.”
Meanwhile, Scott joined Sports Spectrum’s “What’s Up” podcast in December. He discussed the ways his faith helps him handle the pressure and expectations that come with being a high-level athlete.
“I have a faith that all of these things that I’m going through are working together to refine me and make me a better version of myself,” he said on the podcast. “Having faith through that gives me freeing peace while I play that I’m not here to perform for man or for fans.”
The two friends and teammates reunited once again on Thursday to host a youth football camp in Mansfield, Ohio, in partnership with The Walk Foundation, an organization focused on spiritual outreach through sports.
Smiles & Bibles ✝️
Former Ohio State and New England Patriots rookies TreVeyon Henderson & Gee Scott Jr. held a youth football camp for the kids of Mansfield, Ohio. pic.twitter.com/FEQUbQgw7f
— The Walk (@accessthewalk) July 4, 2025
Both Henderson and Scott are also extremely active in sharing their faith on social media. Henderson declares that “Jesus saved my life” on both his Instagram and X accounts, while Scott describes himself as a “follower of Christ” on X and writes that, “I know who I am because I know Whose I am” on Instagram.
Henderson included a Bible verse from Acts in his Instagram post celebrating his selection by the Patriots.
View this post on Instagram
While Scott was training, traveling around proclaiming the Gospel, and settling into life as a Patriot, he was also in the midst of planning another significant life event. Over the Fourth of July weekend, he proposed to his girlfriend, Olivia. Scott gave glory to God and cited Matthew 19:6 in his Instagram post celebrating the engagement.
View this post on Instagram
As he gets ready to compete for a spot on New England’s roster, Scott will continue to draw strength from the Lord.
“I just believe if I have God with me, that is my strength,” he said on the “What’s Up” podcast. “I’m usually not the one that’s doing a whole bunch of pumping up because I just know the strength that God gives me is enough.”
Henderson’s place on the team may be more secure as New England’s second-round pick, and he knows he is playing for God’s glory and wants to utilize his platform as much as possible.
“I’m just going to continue to let Him guide me and work through me for His glory,” Henderson said on the Sports Spectrum Podcast. “I want to continue to decrease. When people see me, I want them to see the Lord. I want them to see His power to save, to transform. I just want to let His light shine through me.”
The Patriots begin training camp on July 23. New England’s first preseason game is against the Washington Commanders on Aug. 8, and it hosts the Las Vegas Raiders in its regular-season opener on Sept. 7.
>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<
RELATED STORIES:
— SS PODCAST: Ohio St. RB TreVeyon Henderson on returning to college, playing for Jesus
— WHAT’S UP PODCAST: Gee Scott Jr. – Ohio St. Buckeyes Football Player
— Ohio St. RB TreVeyon Henderson says his purpose is to play ‘for the glory of the Lord’
— Ohio State’s Gee Scott preaches, baptizes teammates: ‘Christ is working on this team’
— QB Will Howard, spiritually strong Ohio State claim national title