There are many sports- or football-as-metaphor-for-life stories in print, such as this one (note the subtitle). Additionally, there are celebrities who go to print either at a high point in their career (after winning an Oscar or the Super Bowl). Each of these circumstances is a fertile situation for selling a lot of books and to some degree is true of this book, which topped both Christian and non-Christian lists for a time.
But Quiet Strength is much more than celebrity bravado on display. It is something, as the title describes, paradoxically intriguing. It demonstrates a deep gospel truth presented over and over in Scripture, especially by Jesus and Paul. Tony Dungy, in recounting his life around football, gives us a peek into the counterintuitive upside-down nature of life in the kingdom. In a world where we expect loud strength and quiet weakness, particularly in the world of professional football, we are confronted with a calm, faith-based, family-focused unpretentious NFL coach. There are no screaming histrionics here. It is twenty unremarkable chapters on a remarkably faithful man. It is his uncommon commonness seen in the aphoristic life lessons he dispenses along the way, his extraordinary ordinariness in the midst of a high pressure job that accounts for much of the curiosity about the man and his life.
Tis is for Dungy a matter of deep personal conviction and something to which he tenaciously adheres through thick-and-thin times as a professional football coach. It is probably best expressed in the words of the legendary NFL coach Chuck Noll for whom Tony Dungy played and from whom he got his first coaching job: "Champions are champions not because they do anything extraordinary but because they do the ordinary better than anyone else." In keeping with his be "faithful in small things" upbringing, Dungy steadfastly refused the seduction of novelty and gimmicks, and continued to instruct his teams to "do what we do" (105), a recurring refrain in football and life.
Dungy, the son of a college professor and high school teacher, was nurtured in a loving Christian home. "As far back as I could remember, I understood who Jesus was, that He died because of the things I had done wrong" (20). All throughout his life, he hears nurturing, proverbial echoes of his parents' wisdom guiding him, especially in the lessons about "venting" when angry.
It is his vibrant Christian testimony that is on display. We see Dungy navigate life as a talented high school athlete, a college quarterback, a short-lived professional career as a defensive back and up through the NFL coaching ranks. His growth is chronicled from his youth as a shy kid to husband, father of five, and key spokesman for a family organization. In living, he shows us that worldly success at the highest level is not necessarily inimical to seeking first the kingdom as a devout follower of Jesus.
Though his life is in many ways storied and idyllic, it was not completely so. In this regard, particularly poignant is Dungy's account of the death of his oldest son. The response of the Dungy family epitomizes what it means to grieve in hope, what it means to see death, not as the end, but as the door into eternity with Christ: "We were determined to make Jamie's funeral a celebration" (249). By his own admission, Dungy's quiet strength is fueled by something far more than emotional fortitude or temperamental conditioning. He relies on the miracle of God's grace. "His power works best in my weakness" (263) is how he paraphrased Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9 during their time of loss. Here we do not see any naive triumphalism in tragedy. He and his wife Lauren allow a little access to their deep inner pain and perplexity: "Here I am, a spokesman for the All Pro Dad program, helping others be better parents, and my child took his own life" (259).
It wasn't until one year later (2006) that Dungy would finally reach the pinnacle of professional football as the coach of a Super Bowl-winning team and the first African American to do so. Of course, the significance of this historical moment is not lost on him; he is quite aware of what this means for black society. He saw covenantal lessons in it and is attuned to those who paved the way. His accomplishment wasn't his alone. Like most black Americans, he is conscious of his place and participation in a larger narrative of a people. Quite interestingly, the year that Dungy won the Super Bowl, his friend, former assistant coach, and fellow African American, Lovie Smith, was head coach of the opposing Chicago Bears. A historic moment and outcome was guaranteed.
Dungy's life shows us that in the economy of Jesus' kingdom community, yes, ultimately the first finish last and the last finish first; but sometimes even in this life, we may get a peak of that final dynamic breaking in.
