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Does God really care about who wins a football game?
On Sunday night in Pittsburgh, the American Football Conference North came down to a single kick. Ravens rookie kicker Tyler Loop—perfect all season from under 50 yards—lined up for a 44-yard field goal to win the game and the division. The snap was clean, the hold perfect, the kick had the distance. Then, before a stunned stadium and a national audience, it drifted wide. The Steelers won and are going to the playoffs, abruptly ending Baltimore’s season.
The moment went viral not only for its drama, but because earlier that evening a priest had walked the field and sprinkled “holy water” in one of the end zones. Hours later, it was that very end zone toward which the Ravens were kicking. Asked about it afterward, Steelers captain Cam Heyward smiled and said he would not ask too many questions, adding, “The good Lord made a good decision that night.”
Are Jews really meant to believe God intervenes in a football game?
This is a life question, not a sports question. Is anything too small for God? Is a moment, a decision, a gust of wind beneath His notice or providence?
Though there are various nuanced approaches, the short answer is that God is involved in everything. As King David wrote, “He lowers Himself to see in the heavens and on the earth.” Nothing is too lofty or small for God. The same God Who orchestrates history also arranges the gust of wind that pushes a football a degree to the right. There is no realm of existence in which He is absent, no moment in which He is not present.
So does God care who wins? In the sense that He is involved in and dictates everything that unfolds in His world, yes. But not in the simplistic way we imagine. God was not only listening to the prayers of Steelers fans, he was also speaking to the Ravens, to their coaches, and especially to the young kicker who missed for the first time from that distance. God was present not only in the celebration, but in the heartbreak.
We are responsible for putting in our effort. God controls the result.
We are responsible for putting in our effort. God controls the result. From our perspective, a capable kicker missed in a pressure moment. From the perspective of faith, God decreed that at that exact second, in those exact conditions, the ball would not pass through the uprights. For one side, that miss felt like a divine yes. For the other, a painful no. Yet both were part of His plan.
Judaism insists that God is as present in the miss as in the make, in the disappointment as in the triumph. But failure does not have to be a verdict. It can be an invitation, a chance to grow, to deepen. Sometimes God uses a public disappointment to remind a person that he is more than his statistics.
This truth is beautifully symbolized in a Jewish custom. At a Bar Mitzvah or an Aufruf—a groom’s pre-wedding synagogue honor—we throw candies at the boy or the groom. As Rabbi Schorr explains, these are moments of transition and growth. Life will soon begin throwing things at them. They will feel struck, even pelted. But what is being thrown is candy. It may sting, but inside is sweetness. Within every challenge is a gift, if one has the courage to pick it up and unwrap it.
The missed kick in Pittsburgh is one of those candies. Most of us will never stand in a stadium with millions watching, but all of us stand in our own decisive moments: a diagnosis, an interview, a date, an application. We prepare, we pray, we give our all. Then the answer comes. Sometimes it’s the yes we prayed for. Sometimes it’s the no we feared.
When it is yes, we must remember Who decided it. When it is no, we must remember the candy, the possibility of hidden sweetness.
The “holy water” on the field made for a clever headline, but the deeper story is about God’s presence which is found just as much in loss as in victory.
Belief in God means recognizing that we were seen, that the moment was not random, and that our worth is not measured by the scoreboard. Because the real contest is not decided between the goalposts. It is decided in how we respond, whether we can find meaning, humility, and hidden sweetness even when the kick goes wide.
I am also a baseball fan. I recently watched on YouTube the World Series, not live, but the replays.
Game 7 was very dramatic- an amazing finish for the Los Angeles Dodgers. If anyone watched Miguel Rojas score the tying run, as he neared home plate, he pointed upwards, indicating that it was G-d who helped him.
On a personal level, I felt that G-d was pulling the strings and it was He who helped them win.
My viewpoint is simple: We should look at non-trivial examples of misfortune; real tragedies not football games. I reject the belief in a god who wills immense suffering on people and that we should placate our grief by believing that it is "for our own good". Such a belief clouds our view of reality. It is far better to recognize that our lives are shaped by countless events which are simply outside of our control and that we have to be resolute in coping with whatever comes our way. "How we respond" is indeed what is important.
Thanks so much for this article, as I often consider why G-D could
arrange a certain outcome. Of course, like other parts of life, we really don't know why something happens, but here are some factors I've considered over the years:
1) Will the player interviewed on air after the game, thank G-D for what he did, and have millions hear that message?
2) Are there individuals either individually or collectively who could benefit more if one team wins than the other? Perhaps the Steelers fans would have felt more pain by the loss than Ravens fans, so in His mercy, he had the Steelers win:)
3) Since the kicker who missed is a rookie, he may go on to make many winning field goals in the years to come, and serve as model for over-coming adversity.
Thank you for this. I’m a Kansas City Chiefs fan, and being one who enjoyed ten winning seasons, to spend most of this season in Israel wondering what happened to my team. The only game I watched because of the time difference, I was debating whether to stay in Israel for an extended time or return to KC. I told HaShem if He really wanted me to go back, then to let the Chiefs in the midst of a losing season, to win the game. And they did much to my surprise! So I bought a ticket and returned, though I am sure my prayers weren’t the only reason for the win, I believe the Holy One is more interested in the little things in our lives than we realize. Though I miss Israel, I am good with being in KC for now, and don’t plan to miss next season, hoping for a comeback!!
G-d was present in the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, on January 12, 1969, when the New York Jets defeated the Baltimore Colts 16-7 in Super Bowl III. The Colts were favored by 18 points. G-d had other ideas. This game is often called "the greatest upset of all time."
I didn't see that twist coming! Love the being pelted with candy idea.
The Steelers' kicker Boswell, as good as gold all year, ALSO missed an extra point, which enabled a field goal to potentially win it. Real tragedies DO happen....Jewish hostages and innocents in different countries are murdered. Often, we do NOT and can NOT understand.
As in the movie, DaVinci Code, we ofren see life through our limited vision and, therefore, miss the point.
Is there NONE or is there ONE.....and we have to accept our own limitations in a GIANT, complex Divine existence?