San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Marquise Goodwin, who is grieving following the loss of his baby boy, credits his wife and faith in God for getting him through Sunday's win over the New York Giants. Due to complications, his wife Morgan had to deliver the baby prematurely. The baby did not survive.
The heartbreaking loss occurred just hours before the 49ers' game against the Giants – a game that Goodwin not only played in but scored a touchdown.
Goodwin spoke to Bay Area media via a conference call on Tuesday. It was the first time he spoke publicly since the tragedy. Goodwin revealed that it was his wife that encouraged him to play on Sunday.
"She felt God moved her for allowing me to go play, and she encouraged me, raised my spirits and helped me get ready for the game," Goodwin said via Cam Inman of Bay Area News Group. "That's what's so cool about the situation is my wife, how supportive and encouraging she is. All these great things she does for me, to help me go play the way I did. It speaks more about her character than mine."
Below are more quotes from the conversation with Goodwin.
"We didn't realize that sharing our journey with this baby would gain this many people (who support us)," Goodwin said via Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle.
Goodwin offered encouragement to anyone else that might go through the same thing.
"Never stop believing," Goodwin said via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area. "The reward will last longer than the pain."
"We do have a lot of people that are following us through our journey," Goodwin said via Maiocco. "So we can maybe help people who've dealt with similar things that we have gone through or learn things from people who've been through our situation."
With the 49ers down 6-3 in the second quarter, rookie quarterback C.J. Beathard found Goodwin deep and hit him for an 83-yard touchdown. The play helped set the tone for the game and was one of four touchdowns scored by the 49ers on Sunday.
C.J. going DEEP to @flashg88dwin for the TD! 83 yards to the 🏡 #NYGvsSF pic.twitter.com/snZKzSwVJB
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 12, 2017
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan praised Goodwin for playing against the Giants and contributing to the team's first victory of the season.
"He was struggling with it for obvious reasons," Shanahan said on Monday. "He decided to play, which we were very grateful for. I think he did a hell of a job for his wife yesterday, being there for her and helped out his family from that aspect and also helped out his family here too."
You can read more about what Goodwin had to say in the related links below.