On a wing and a prayer, New Orleans Saints running back Pierre Thomas reached the NFL with a prayer on his wing. Thomas said he “bugged the heck” out of his mother for permission to get a tattoo as a 16-year-old growing up just south of Chicago. “I thought they were cool and I really wanted one,” Thomas told FOXSports.com. Greta Thomas eventually acquiesced – but also offered her son a warning. “She said, ‘You know, that’s going to be on your body for the rest of your life,’” Thomas said. Her words made Thomas think about what he didn’t want inked. “I’m not putting this against people, but I always question and wonder why people get their names,” Thomas said with a smile. “It’s like, ‘You’re going to forget your own name or something?’ That's what I ask people when their name is tatted on themselves. But if that's what they want …” Thomas worked with a local tattoo artist to design what he wanted – a tribute to his mother, family and God. Thomas started with a large Celtic cross on his right shoulder and biceps. A rosary hangs from two folded hands placed squarely in the middle of the cross. Above it all are three words written in a Harlow-style font: As We Pray. “It always reminds me of how my family tells me, ‘God makes everything possible. Give Him all praise, honor and glory for everything you’ve done and received,’” Thomas said. “It’s not just for myself either. It says, ‘As We Pray.’ I’m praying for everybody else, too.” Thomas’ prayers were answered when he made it to the NFL in 2007 as an undrafted free agent from the University of Illinois. Although used primarily in a running-back-by-committee approach, Pierre ranks in the Top 10 all-time Saints rushing categories. He leads the team again this year with 74 carries for 341 yards and one touchdown. Thomas said prayer has helped him “get through a lot of tough times when people told me I can’t do certain things. I’m too small. I’m not fast enough. I prayed to God to help me get through. Just listening to Him, he pushed me along. I just followed His path that He chose for me.” Thomas said he doesn’t have a favorite Biblical verse or passage but there is a Christian-inspired mantra by which he tries to live: You are who you are. “You’re the person you always present to everybody else,” Thomas said. “If you’re rude, you’re not going to have too many friends and I don’t think a lot of things will work out for you the way you want. But if you’re a loyal person and somebody who’s committed, good things will happen.” Thomas is living proof.
