Terrion Arnold And His Mom Have A ... Special Relationship

PublishedMay 10, 2024 4:53 PM EDT|UpdatedMay 10, 2024 4:53 PM EDT

First a message for the soulless degenerates who, until right now, didn't remember Sunday is Mother's Day: Send the woman who brought you into this life something nice or, at the very least, call her or hug on her.

Show love.

Now, speaking of love for and of a mother: I present to you Detroit Lions cornerback Terrion Arnold and his mother Tamala Arnold.

DETROIT, MI - APRIL 25: Cornerback Terrion Arnold poses for portraits after being selected 24th overall in the first round by the Detroit Lions during the 2024 NFL draft on April 25, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images)

Tamala Arnold Was Tough

Arnold was born in Tallahassee, FL., in 2003 and reared by his single mother.

But just because there wasn't a father present didn't mean Arnold didn't learn about competitiveness, confidence, grit and toughness.

"I’ll never forget one time my mom kicked my tooth out because we was just going at it so hard ," Arnold shared at the opening of the Detroit Lions rookie minicamp on Friday.

It seems the apple didn't fall far from the proverbial tree through the generations.

At the NFL combine, Arnold reflected on how Tamala's father, his grandfather, showed him about confidence. This is important because Arnold plays cornerback and a cornerback without confidence is soon unemployed.

Learned Confidence From Grandfather

"Playing corner you have to have that and it comes from my granddad," Arnold shared in Indianapolis. "My grandad was a roofer so that being said, I like to correlate roofing with football.

"My grandad always told me on that roof no one is coming to save you .. Is high pitch walking up there, you slipping on the fiber glass, you kind of get a little rocky, little shaky, and you know that if you lose confidence in yourself you're going to slip and fall.

"It's the same way [playing] corner, and being a human being. If you don't have that confidence to come in and take over a room and have that presence nobody is gonna have that confidence in you."

So, yeah, loving this rookie already. But this story doesn't end quite yet.

Arnold, you see, if vying for a starting job with the Lions at the cornerback spot opposite Carlton Davis III.

And if he wins that job, the expectation of the first-round draft pick is he'll be part of the reason the Lions get past last year's stumbling block – the NFC Championship game – and get to the Super Bowl.

How important is that for Arnold?

Well, back to his mom.

Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold covering Texas A&M wide receiver Evan Stewart with the ball in flight to the right under the scoreboard on the last play of the game Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. Pass interference was not called. Photo courtesy of TexAgs.com.

Arnold Would Jam Mom Into Dirt

"So, if my mom was out here right now and she lined up across me as a receiver, I would jam her into the dirt," Arnold said.

"That’s my mindset and my mom knows that right now. I just mean it in the simple aspect of like football-wise, that’s just the way that I think and the way that I was brought up."

Don't get it wrong. Arnold loves his mother. For real.

His message of that went viral from the scouting combine.

"I just want to say, Tamala Arnold, I love you," he said. "I’m right here. The whole world is watching, and I am blessed to have you as a mom."

Love on your moms on Sunday, people – even if it's after you jam them into the dirt in a football pickup game.