Former NFL star Kurt Warner has been ridiculed by fans this weekend after a comment he made against evolution during a television broadcast.
"I'm not fully buying the evolutionary theory where one species transforms into another," Warner said on the NFL Network's 'NFL Game Day' program on Sunday. "But if we're talking about the idea that every species has the ability to adapt over time, well then I'm all in. As a matter of fact, I've actually seen this happen in a group I've been studying for years: NFL quarterbacks."
The former Superbowl-winning quarterback made the comment as a lighthearted joke, but football fans quickly began lambasting the commentator on sports forums and on Twitter, to which he fought back.
"Just shut up, Kurt. You don't even know anything about evolution," wrote one Twitter follower. Warner turned up the defense by addressing the questions directed at him via the social media outlet. "C'mon, really? Plus I said I'm not buying it... Still waiting to see a monkey become human in my lifetime? You?"
But the comments got much more heated in the comments section of the Gawker Media sports site, Deadspin, where the article's author called Warner a "Jesus Freak.". "People who believe in creationism should just be lined up and shot for being too stupid to live," one commenter said. "And too dangerous to have walking around in society."
Kurt Warner started his post-college career with the Green Bay Packers in 1994 as an undrafted free agent, and went on to win two Super Bowl rings with the St. Louis Rams in 1999 and 2001. He then led the Arizona Cardinals to their first Super Bowl appearance in 2008, and owns the three highest single-game passing yardage totals in Super Bowl history. He currently ranks first in all-time completion percentage and holds the record for the highest completion percentage in a single regular season game.
The Christian NFL great is not shy about his faith, often praising God for his triumphs on the field. "Well, first things first, I've got to thank my Lord and Savior up above," Warner said after the first Rams' Super Bowl victory where he was named the game's MVP. "Thank you, Jesus!"
But Kurt's faith isn't a gimmick. After a tornado claimed the lives of his mother- and father-in-law in 1996, Kurt and his wife, Brenda, turned their lives to the Lord. "That situation showed me that you don't know what is going to happen tomorrow," he said during an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network. "You have to live life for today and for this moment. It was at that point that I realized the Lord needed to be at the center of my life. I couldn't wait until tomorrow or next year. It needed to be right now.
"When you stand up and say, 'Thank You, Jesus,' they think you are saying, 'Thank You for being here," he continued during the interview. "Thank You for moving my arm forward and making the ball go into that guy's hands so that we could score a touchdown and win the game.' But, in essence, it is a matter of thanking Him for the opportunity, thanking Him for being there in my life, for being the stronghold, for being the focus and the strength to accomplish all things, to accomplish anything, and to be where I am at, to have gone through everything I have gone through. It is a constant thing in my life. It is not just for something specific He did on the football field to help us win; it is for everything that He has done in my life up to that point and for everything He will continue to do in my life from here until eternity."
