Detroit Lions Player Says “God Meant for Jordy to Get Hurt,” Gets Taken Out of Context

Keith Allison is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Keith Allison is licensed under CC BY 2.0
NFL player Glover Quin’s blunt remark on Jordy Nelson’s injury brings up questions about his intent.

There’s no question Glover Quin said it: “…God meant for Jordy to get hurt.” But as Terry Foster of the Detroit News reports, the quote was taken out of context. Way out of context if you think the comments he made were mean spirited in any way.

Foster is familiar with Quin, who is a safety for the Detroit Lions. He knows that Quin was not singling out Jordy Nelson of the Green Bay Packers, a bitter division rival. Or, more accurately, Quin wasn’t saying that God is singling Nelson out.

Quin has been very consistent about giving credit to God for all of his accomplishments, and, in fact, saying that God is in control of everything that happens.

So Quin said that “God meant for Jordy to get hurt,” but also went on to explain that people have always asked him how he has stayed healthy and only missed one game in his entire career.  Quin said, “I don’t know why I have been lucky but I have been blessed and the person I believe that blessed me to stay healthy is my God.”

Foster goes on to point out that Quin was pigeonholed with other athletes who give credit to God for helping them win games and championships, as if God had chosen, say, the New England Patriots over the Seattle Seahawks.

We live in a time when those who comes from a religious point of view are quick to accuse the more secular of trying to restrict their ability to practice their faith, and at the same time the secular crowd feels as though the religious are shoving their faith down their throats.

The misunderstanding here with Quin’s comments–while partially attributable to Quin himself and the poor phrasing of his original comment–are also being attributed to the prevalence of the left versus right, day versus night, us versus them society right now.

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