‘Jesus is everything’: Seahawks players, staff give God the glory after Super Bowl win

Seattle’s coaching staff and players boldly praised God Sunday night following a dominant Super Bowl victory that gave the Seahawks their second championship in franchise history.

The Seahawks raced to a 9-0 halftime lead, stretched it to 19-0 and then finished it off for a 29-13 victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LV in Santa Clara, California. Seattle’s other Super Bowl title, a 43-8 win over Denver in 2014, also was lopsided.

Faith was front and center after the game, from the players on the field to the head coach.

“Jesus is everything,” wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba said during a postgame news conference after catching four passes for 27 yards. He was the NFL’s leading receiver this season.  

Smith-Njigba was seen praying on the field before the game. He was quick, though, to stress that he didn’t believe God favored the Seahawks simply because they won. 

“When I put it on His shoulders – He takes it off my shoulders,” he said of pressure and life’s trials. “He never fails me. He’s never failed me, whether we would have won or lost today. You know, Jesus won, and I’m just happy to give Him the glory today.” 

Fellow wide receiver Cooper Kupp – in his first season with the Seahawks – also pointed to his faith. He caught six passes for 61 yards.  

“I think the thing that I learned more than anything else is that I can trust in what God’s plan is for me,” Kupp said.  

Kupp was released by the Los Angeles Rams in May 2025 and didn’t know what the future held – or whether he could still be a star receiver for another team. He responded by finishing as the Seahawks’ second-leading receiver. 

“There were times this year that I didn’t know what was happening,” he said, describing the past year as “really tough times … for my family and I.” 

“It’s just leaning into and trusting that He has a plan, and finding the joy every day coming to work and being a part of a really cool group of guys that are going to achieve something special, being able to come home every day and have my boys run out onto the porch and run to give me a hug – and a wife that’s jumping up into my arms and excited to see me. I’m so incredibly blessed.”  

Running back Kenneth Walker III, the game’s MVP with 135 rushing yards, also thanked God during the televised postgame interview. So, too, did head coach Mike Macdonald. 

“I believe God called me to be a coach and I listened to Him, and I thank Him,” Macdonald told NBC before thanking Seattle’s passionate fans – often called the “12s.” 

“We are incredibly blessed to be Seahawks, to be 12s, and now we’re world champions.” 

He later added: “My faith hasn’t always been strong. You have doubts, it’s kind of a roller coaster ride, and over the last few years it’s been really strengthened. You see what our players do and what [Seahawks team chaplain] Jonathan Rainey does every day and brings people together. It’s a journey that we’re in together. It’s empowering and it’s inspiring to pursue that part of your life that’s so important.”