There has been a noticeable frustration with the Trump/Vance ticket in evangelical circles regarding abortion. Because the GOP candidates and platform have backed away from the full-throated defense of life in the womb and have taken a federalist approach to the abortion battle (that is, to have it fought in the states with no federal ban proposed) there are those who are expressing their disgust by claiming that they will not vote for Trump in November.

This is a recipe for disaster that will have far-reaching consequences above and beyond the abortion issue. Our republic may not survive in a recognizable form if Trump loses the presidential contest.

The election of the Democrat ticket this year will allow for the continued federal advance of pro-abortion policies, porous borders, high taxes, DEI practices, globalism, and transgender ideology in our body politic. Evangelical Christians and other staunch abortion opponents need to accept that Trump and Vance -- even with their current less-than-righteous abortion position -- is the only option to stave off further denigration of the American experiment. The unborn will certainly fare much worse at the federal level if the Democrat nominees win this fall.

Politics is much like sports, so let us analyze this situation with a sporting analogy. It is a rare occasion when winning comes in a perfect package of technical precision, mastery of the fundamentals, and artistic beauty. Such a case would be Joe Montana, who won four Super Bowls, and lost none, all while executing the work of his position as quarterback almost flawlessly and with an agreeable public personality. Ronald Reagan was just such a politician. Not only did the Gipper have the gift of winsomeness and could win over his opponents with charm, but ideologically he was a very solid conservative who appealed consistently to people of traditional Christian faith.

Unfortunately, this election cycle is unlike 1984, when Reagan won reelection handily and which was the season when Montana won his second Super Bowl championship. This season requires us to use a different football analogy.

Dan Marino is widely regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history. He retired in 2000 after 17 seasons with the Miami Dolphins with records in pass completions, pass yards, and touchdowns. His career included accolades such as Most Valuable Player, All Pro, and Comeback Player of the Year. He had a winning record of 61 percent in his career, taking his team to the playoffs 11 times, and was the only quarterback to beat the famed 1985 Chicago Bears by torching their vaunted defense for 38 points.

But the talented Marino never won the Super Bowl. His only appearance in the big game resulted in a 22-point trouncing by the San Francisco 49ers, helmed by none other than the aforementioned Joe Montana.

Conversely, Trent Dilfer is considered an average NFL quarterback. A journeyman who played with five different franchises over 14 seasons, Dilfer amassed only a .500 winning percentage and holds no league passing records. He had only two seasons in which he led his team to the postseason, and in 1995 he became the first quarterback in NFL history to be ejected from a game.

Not the most glorious statistical career… but on January 28, 2001, Dilfer was under center commanding his Baltimore Ravens to a dominating 34-7 Super Bowl win over the New York Giants.

Consider the route that Trent Dilfer took to get his ring. After six unremarkable seasons in Tampa Bay, he moved to play for Baltimore in 2000 where he would replace a flailing Tony Banks at quarterback after four games into that season. He then led the Ravens to seven regular season wins, three playoff victories, and the Super Bowl title. He did not have a fabulous Super Bowl performance -- he completed only 12 of 25 passes for one touchdown in the game -- but his team scored a rushing touchdown, a pick-six on defense, a kickoff return TD, and two field goals, while committing no turnovers. His defense allowed no points, with the Giants’ only score coming on a special teams play. It was a total team effort, and Dilfer got the ring because of it.

Regarding the abortion issue, Donald Trump is not a Reaganesque Joe Montana. He is pugilistic and his ideology can be unnervingly flexible. Trump has vacillated on the abortion issue throughout his public career, sometimes racking up big wins like placing justices on the Supreme Court who overturned Roe v. Wade, and other times throwing errant passes resulting in PR kerfuffles among his supporters such as his recent squishiness away from a strong stance on a national abortion ban. This profile might make us think that Trump is a Marino-like figure -- lots of great stats but bound to lose the big game. If evangelical voters and other abolitionists don’t show up on November 5, Donald Trump will not have all the necessary weapons at his disposal and he may get defeated in the big game like Marino. On the other hand, if Trump’s whole team emulates the 2000 Ravens who stood with their middling quarterback to lead them to pay dirt, despite his weaknesses Trump can be our Trent Dilfer.

There is another way in which Trump may be an analogue to Dilfer. Having won Super Bowl 35, the Ravens decided to let Dilfer go in favor of a new quarterback whom they thought to be more athletically gifted. This turned out to be a bad decision as the 2001 Ravens did not repeat as champs, losing in the second round of the playoffs. Like Dilfer, Trump in his political career has already shown his victorious mettle at quarterback in his first term. In the 2020 election, he also endured ignominy like Dilfer in losing his job. Dilfer did not get a return invitation to steer the Baltimore football frigate; the team then floundered and could not defend the title. Will we be like the Ravens and ditch our quarterback despite his championship pedigree? Trump is available and ready to lead his team to the win on November 5. Will those who are disenchanted with his wobbliness on issues like abortion hold back from giving Trump a chance to hoist the Lombardi trophy again?

The presidential election is a far greater and more important prize than a Super Bowl win. Everyone who is concerned about the general state of our nation and the abortion issue in particular must coalesce like the 2000 Baltimore Ravens and support our Dilferesque quarterback Donald Trump. He is not “Joe Cool” Montana with an unblemished Super Bowl record. His passer rating and raw numbers are not that of Dan Marino. But Donald Trump believes in team victories over individual statistics. No doubt, Dan Marino was one of the all-time greats. Nevertheless, I will take Trent Dilfer and the ring over Dan Marino’s brilliant stats and zero championships any day of the week.

John Steinreich is a Christian thought leader and author. He hosts the “God and Government” podcast which focuses on analyzing political issues through a biblical lens. Follow John on X at www.x.com/@godandgov.

Image: John Martinez Pavliga