Philadelphia Eagles QB Nick Foles says he wants to become pastor after football career

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles has said that he plans to become a pastor when he retires from his football career.

Foles, who became the Most Valuable Player after leading his team to a Super Bowl victory on Sunday, said at a news conference ahead of Super Bowl LII that he wants to become a pastor in high school and he has already started taking classes at a seminary.

"It's on my heart. I took a leap of faith last year and signed up to take classes at seminary. I wanted to continue to learn and challenge my faith. It's a challenge because you are writing papers that are biblically correct. You want to impact people's hearts," Foles said, as reported by The Christian Post.

"When I speak to (students), that's such a time of young men and young women's lives that there's a lot of things that are thrown at them. So much temptation in this world, so much going on with social media and the internet that you want to talk to them and address it, and share all the weaknesses I have because I've fallen many times," he added.

Foles, who was offensive MVP of the Pro Bowl following the 2013 season, had previously contemplated retirement after he was released by the Rams in July 2016.

He said that prayer helped him decide to stay in the NFL, and he eventually decided to return to the Eagles this season as the backup quarterback to Carson Wentz.

Foles had stepped in to lead the Eagles to success after Wentz got injured with a torn ACL in December.

According to Fox Sports, he had acquired the record for the highest passer rating in postseason history for quarterbacks who have thrown at least 75 passes, and he has completed 72 of 96 passes for 793 yards, with five touchdowns with no interceptions in three games for a 116.4 passer rating.

The Eagles' victory over the Patriots on Sunday was the team's first Super Bowl championship since 1960.

Other members of the Eagles are also outspoken about their faith, and many of them spend time together in prayer. During the last season, one team member committed his life to Christ while others were baptized.

According to CBN News, tight end Zach Ertz had committed his life to Christ in March 2017, and a few months later, wide receiver Marcus Johnson was baptized in a North Carolina swimming pool just before a game against the California Panthers.

Late last year, linebackers Jordan Hicks, Mychal Kendricks and Kamu Grugier-Hill, and wide receivers Paul Turner and David Watford were baptized in the team's recovery pool.