Game Time: Tackling the Past

Game Time: Tackling the Past

Premiers

Saturday, September 3 on NBC at 8pm ET/7pm CT

Pro football star Jake Walker is living the dream… or so he thinks. The veteran tight end is a fan favorite and on pace to set the all-time receiving yards record that will guarantee him a spot in the Hall of Fame. While working out at training camp, Jake receives an unexpected call from his brother Dean – their father Frank has suffered a major heart attack. Jake immediately leaves practice and returns to Riverton, North Carolina, the small hometown he’s avoided for nearly 15 years. Memories of glory and regret flood his mind as he returns to the family and friends he abandoned in pursuit of his career. Jake dutifully visits with Frank and Dean, but hurt and misunderstanding from the past begins to resurface, leaving him counting the days until he can return to his team.



A second unexpected call, this time from his agent, delivers Jake another crushing blow. His contract is not being renewed amid concerns about his surgically repaired knee. Suddenly, the life Jake knows is over. To avoid the media circus around this news, Jake reluctantly decides to extend his stay in Riverton. Attempting to make the best of the situation, he begins reconnecting with the community that once revered him. Jake is reintroduced to Sarah, his high school sweetheart, and helps Dean take over their father’s high school coaching job.

Surprisingly impacted by the people around him, the real Jake begins to emerge from behind his armor to see that life is much more than the accumulation of personal stats. But when Jake’s offered a lucrative new contract to play for another team, he is forced to decide whether to go back to the career he thought he loved, or stay in Riverton and embrace the people who always believed in him.

I thoroughly enjoyed watching this movie tonight. First off, I love football, so those elements were included throughout the movie. But also, this movie was so much more than a football movie. Humility, triumph, selflessness, and love for family sum up what this movie is truly about.

Jake is a star and future hall of famer who is having knee problems and is in danger of getting cut from his pro football team. His dad and brother coach the team he played for many years ago. His dad, under stress from the team he coaches, has a heart attack and needs surgery. Jake reluctantly comes home to be with his family, even though he still puts himself first. He has a strained relationship with his dad and brother stemming from his high school days when he put himself above the team. With his career on the line, he soon learns that there are bigger things happening around him then going back to pro football.
Eventually, as Jake starts coaching the team and reuniting with a past love in his hometown, He starts to see that there's more to life than his football career.

Overall, this film is a great film for the entire family. I highly recommend this the next time you and your family have a family movie night.


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“I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Dad Central Consulting on behalf of P&G and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.”