Atlanta Falcons punter Bradley Pinion is making a difference both on and off the football field this season.
The veteran NFL player is locked in as the Falcons look to maintain first place in the NFC South and win the team’s first division title in nearly a decade as the season winds down to the final few weeks of the regular season.
But Pinion is hoping that his football talents can help achieve another important goal.
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Pinion, 30, and his wife Kaeleigh created the "Punts for Purpose" initiative last season aimed at making a difference in the lives of mothers and babies living in extreme poverty in the developing world.
They’ve partnered with Compassion International on a project called "The Fight for First," with the goal of launching 500 survival centers and raising $7.5 million by the end of the year. For his part, Pinion and his wife will donate $1,000 for every punt that lands within the 20-yard line this season.
"The partnership with Compassion is one that is really near and dear to me and my wife's heart," he told Fox News Digital in an interview this week. "It's a partnership that started probably two or three years ago. And what we loved about compassion, one is that in their slogan right there it says 'In Jesus Name.' And me and my wife are big believers, and we live our life through faith. And in finding an organization that also lives their life and their mission through faith was really important to us."
Pinion launched the program last season, admitting that he hadn’t expected much of a response from other punters in the league because it was "last minute." To his surprise, nearly half the punters in the league participated and they collectively raised around $150,000.
"It was kind of last minute, and we had 14 guys, basically almost half the NFL punters, do it for at least one week of their season, and it was super, super rewarding and super humbling to see guys going alongside of a cause so near and dear to us."
Pinion was recognized by his team for his work and was nominated as the Falcons 2023 Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee. Humbled by the recognition, Pinion told Fox News Digital that he believes his talents as a football player were a gift to him that afforded him the opportunity to make a difference.
"It's just something that happens to be a byproduct of what I'm honestly, truly passionate about. I love football, and football pays the bills and pays very well and gives me a blessed life. But the platform that football has given my family, you can't really compare that to anything else. I feel like my purpose is to use that platform to serve Christ and to serve Jesus and to serve a people that are in need -- people in poverty, whether that be animals, whether that be people, whether that be children, whatever it might be. I definitely believe that that's why I was given these talents that I've been given and the platform that I've been given is to do that."
"The Fight for First" campaign has already raised over $6.8 million and funded 455 centers. These centers provide prenatal care, nutritious food and clean water, assistance during childbirth, medical treatment, access to medicine and more.
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