Deaf Seattle Seahawks fullback Derrick Coleman stars in inspiring commercial (Video)
By Josh Hill
The Seattle Seahawks are off to the NFC Championship game this weekend, which means they’re just one game away from the Super Bowl. As a result of the new found fame, players all over the Seahawks roster are getting noticed by the country for the first time.
One of those players is fullback Derrick Coleman. The Seahawks have the loudest stadium in the NFL that constantly disrupts opposing players, but Coleman isn’t effected by the noise. He isn’t affected by the noise because he has learned to tune it out or has gotten used to it, but because without the help of a hearing aide, he can’t hear it.
Coleman is the first legally deaf fullback in the NFL but he hasn’t allowed himself to be hindered by not being able to hear. He had a stellar career with the UCLA Bruins and has now wound up the fullback for the NFC’s best team.
Duracell has produced a commercial that features Coleman using their batteries to power his hearing aide so that he can hear the roar of the Seahawks crowd after years of tuning out all the critics who told him his NFL career couldn’t happen. It’s a touching commercial, as it shows Coleman growing up to his playing days at UCLA, his dissapointment at not getting drafted to his emerging from the Seahawks tunnel at CenturyLink Field.
Coleman may not have been widely known, but he’s now definitely someone a lot of fans will be rooting for this weekend.