On what could have been a terrible Sunday for the Arizona Cardinals special teams player, Jesse Luketa earned a free pass to his Week 12 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams and made a few friends along the way.
Luketa, a 24-year-old Canadian, told AZfamily.com that he blew a tire with only 30 minutes left on his trip to Glendale’s State Farm Stadium.When that failed, he tried to put air back into it at a petrol station in north Phoenix and began thinking about his choices.
Luketa requested for a ride from a family wearing Cardinals jerseys as he hurried to arrive in time for pregame warm-ups.
The Edmonton native said to reporters, “As I’m sitting there, I look to my right, and I see a family; they’re wearing Cardinals gear.”
I figure I have nothing to lose because it appears like they’re heading to the stadium. I roll down my window and ask, “You guys heading to the stadium?”
Luketa did not initially look like an NFL player, despite being a massive 6-foot-3 and 252 pounds player.
”Yes, I’m a player; I need to get to the stadium,” Luketa remarked. At first, they didn’t think I was a player.
The Phillips family accommodated him in their vehicle.
Ultimately, we merely wanted to assist someone, to be very honest. “It wasn’t whether he was a football player or not,” J.W. Phillips, 31, stated.
During the Rams’ 37-14 victory, the Phillipses got to witness their new buddy make a tackle and recover a fumble.
Luketa is sending the family tickets to the Cardinals’ home game against the San Francisco 49ers on December 17 as a way to express his gratitude.
Luketa started his journey to the NFL in Canada. Born in Edmonton to a single Congolese mother, he spent his early years in Ottawa until he was 14 years old, at which point he enrolled in a high school in Pennsylvania.
“He truly is the most kindhearted person,” J.W. stated to The Athletic. The children were providing updates on who scored and fantasy football. They questioned him about where he played and how he attended college. We discussed his Canadian origins and his family. He simply exudes sincerity and genuineness.
He was more infatuated with the Phillips family than they were with Luketa, though.
“Good people are still around!” On X, Luketa wrote.
