It was Peyton Manning who, not-so-adroitly, coined the term “idiot kicker” during the 2003 Pro Bowl.

But Mike Vanderjagt’s got nothin’ on Vikings punter Chris Kluwe.

All Vanderjagt did was criticize QB Manning for having a laid-back demeanor in the locker room.  Kluwe?  He railroaded the institution of marriage.

Kluwe didn’t just catch it with its head down.   He stood over it… taunting it… spewing invective-laden rants at any others who would dare defend the necessity of one man, one woman.

Kluwe came off the edge, and in ferocious, reckless abandon, put the hurt on a…

Oh.  That’s right.  Kluwe’s no sneaky, lay-the-smack-down, type of guy out of the secondary.  He’s a kicker.  A pose-in-a-gay-mag, shanking-20-yard punts, kicker.  An “idiot kicker” who uses bully tactics in open letters to state delegates.

“Idiot” because he supports so-called gay marriage?  No.  “Idiot” because he’s made the cognizant choice to take part in the name-calling and shout-down behaviour that has come to mark the SS”M” movement.

And those who hold fast to the traditional and TRUE meaning of marriage aren’t standing for it anymore.

And it’s more than refreshing to see that voices are rising from the rubble of four disappointing results in Washington, Minnesota, Maryland and Maine on election night.

So, some folks took a sledgehammer to the institution of marriage on November 6th.  Big deal.  We know we’re in a for a fight.  We’ve known, all along.

And that goes for Bernard Pollard.

You want imposing forces on the grid-iron?  Bernard’s got game.   On, and off the field.

Following the disappointing result in Maryland, the Baltimore Ravens DB had this to say on the subject of marriage – “When it’s all said and done, there are a lot of guys on this team that stand firmly behind what the Bible says — that a man marries a woman and a woman marries a man.”

Of course, “a lot of guys” is code for “most guys”.   But you wouldn’t know it, the way the narrative is played out in the mainstream media.  Yes, even footballing behemoths can be made to feel that they had better stand down on marriage.

But there are some who choose to be courageous.

Before Bernard, there was Birk.  Teammate Matt, a hulking Pro-Bowl Center and Minnesota native, did not allow himself to be victimized by the vitriol.  Birk, the antithesis to Kluwe, with reasonable and straight-forward talk – sans potty-mouth – laid his stance on marriage out there for all to see.  Matt Birk made me proud to be a Catholic, once again.

And I’m left to feel, unequivocally, that Birk is proud of his Church’s stance in light of the unfortunate polling results from last Tuesday.

Just today, the Vatican announced “in an unusually strongly worded statement” that it will not give up in its fight to uphold the TRUE meaning of marriage.

The Holy See is asking for one thing from Catholics.  That one thing is this – courage.

Take heart that nothing can destroy marriage.  No politician.  No activist judge.  No vote.  No idiot kicker.

Those forces will do their best to chip away at this most vital cornerstone to every culture known to mankind.  But that’s exactly how this “game” is supposed to shake down, folks.  At it’s very heart, it’s Scriptural.  It has, to some extent, a sporting element.

At the end of the day, the most effective game-plan will win out.  We know there is nothing better for a child than for a child to be loved by his own mother and father.  That’s the gold standard, even if it means being labelled a “bigot”.  But the game that is currently underway must include the involvement of dedicated, courageous players willing to get their hands dirty.

I’m willing to assume the three-point stance on marriage.  Are you?

It’s time to get ‘smash-mouth’ on marriage.

Figuratively speaking, of course.