Football Brings Happiness to all Delhommes
 

Football brings happiness to all Delhommes

By Jake Delhomme
Special to NFL.com

(June 7, 2006) -- Every time someone asks me how it feels to play in the NFL, I have to smile. It's hard for me to get my mind around what it really means. I look at myself as a normal person who is simply lucky enough to throw a football for a living and play in the NFL. I'm really just one of the lucky ones.

My life is wonderful right now. I have a beautiful daughter who is three-and-a-half years old. One of her first words was "touchdown" of all things. She comes to all the home games. Obviously she is a little too young to understand what's going on, but she seems to enjoy it. One of the best things about children is that she has a great time no matter whether we win or lose, which is a good thing. It's easy to be down and not in a good mood after a loss, but the minute you walk in the house and see her little face it takes some of the pain away. You still think about the game, but it makes it just a little bit easier to spend the day with your child.

My parents are big fans of the game. They live in Louisiana and try to come up for about three or four games. The Panthers play in New Orleans every year as well, so they always come to that game. They'll also get to a road game in Texas if we have one on the schedule because that's not too far of a trip from their home.

I grew up watching NFL games with my dad so I know my dad is extremely proud of me, the same way I would be if I had a son playing in the NFL. When I was a kid he used to take me to Saints games once in a while. It was a two-hour drive from home but we made the trip several times. I can still remember those teams with Bobby Hebert at quarterback and the Dome Patrol. I was about 10 years old at the time those guys played, so that was when I was really a huge fan. It's strange to think that kids out there think of me that way now.

When I drive to games on Sunday mornings it's always such a humbling experience to see people wearing my jersey. I just shake my head and laugh. How did a kid from Louisiana become a quarterback in the NFL? It's a hard to wrap my mind around it, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

This Father's Day my family and I will be down in Louisiana at my parents' house. We'll probably just relax at my folks' house and my dad will no doubt be barbecuing. As my dad likes to say, "Every day is Father's Day when you're a parent."


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