Injury might be keeping Derrick Coleman on sidelines, but he’s still inspiring off the field

Seahawks fullback Derrick Coleman says it’s killing him to sit on the sidelines after being placed on injured reserve following a foot fracture, but the man known to many as the first deaf offensive player in the NFL is still inspiring people off the field.

Coleman took a day out this week to meet with preschool students who are learning about what it means to be deaf. He’s been deaf since he was three and yet defied doubters by making it into one of the most sought-after positions in the world.

“He can’t even hear and he’s playing the NFL,” says Coleman speaking of how people react to his story. “It’s already hard enough to make it for everyday people and now you take somebody who has a disability [who makes it] in the NFL.”

His story gained national attention when he appeared in an ad for Duracell batteries last January. Coleman thought the ad would be speaking particularly to the deaf community, but he tells KIRO Radio’s Ron & Don he was surprised when it became clear his story was inspirational for people of all abilities and backgrounds.

“I’m thinking I’m going to get a lot of people who have hearing aids and things like that, but it really wasn’t. It was just people who have everyday problems or people doubt them.”

Any who doubted his ability to play football are clearly eating their words after Coleman took home a Super Bowl ring. And while he’s on the sidelines now, he has no doubt he’ll get back out there.

“I’m almost fine,” he says of his foot fracture, which landed him on injured reserve and knocked him out for the season. The fracture was repaired with a screw placed in the bone below his baby toe. He says normally it takes four to six weeks to recover, “but you know thinking about the Seahawks, we’ve got to keep on moving.”

Coleman looked perfectly healthy walking around the KIRO Radio studios, but he’s still healing. He says it’s hard not to be able to practice or play, but he works with the team wherever he can to offer support.

“I know I can’t be out there, but I know I can help them in whatever way I can. Even if it’s just something real small like, ‘Put your foot that way,’ or ‘Be more aggressive at this point.’ I’m not even trying to be a coach, I’m just trying to make sure it carries on. At the end of the day, this is the Seahawks, I want them to win.”

He wants them to win, and he wants them to win big, saying “I want another one,” when it comes to a Super Bowl ring. The team’s chances look good, and after all, who is going to doubt Derrick Coleman.

Listen to the full interview: