Ted Lasso has been all the rage in the 2020s. It’s won awards, public affection, and it serves as a model story of leadership and character. I streamed Apple TV for the sole purpose of watching it, and it didn’t disappoint. The plot was appealing to me as a sports fan, but the characters were also enjoyable, and I was happy to read Lead It Like Lasso afterward. Later, I watched the show again with my wife, who despite no interest in sports, cheered for the A.F.C. Richmond football club as any of us. The show paid dividends to me again as we could share in the story together.

Watching the show gave me humor and good cheer, but a certain episode gave me something I didn’t anticipate: A conviction of guilt. It came from my reaction to a storyline, with shame and sadness that I hadn’t seen a certain predicament as Coach Lasso did. My response didn’t match his benevolent approach to the situation, and I had an odd moment of reflecting on my beliefs. The best approach to life was now being exemplified from a fictional football coach from Kansas, and it was a unique moment while binge watching a TV show.

*Spoiler alerts from here, though I only talk about one subplot of the entire show. So take that as you will.*

Ted Lasso has an assistant coach named Nate. At first a custodian, bullied by players and shy as can be, Ted treated him from the start as any peer. He recognized Nate’s talents in soccer strategy, encouraging him to speak up for the betterment of the team. He became an asset to their success, but in time, the bullied became the bully. Nate came to swell with pride, disparaging staff for mistakes while obsessing over social media posts about himself. He quit A.F.C. Richmond with rage, claiming Ted had stopped paying attention to him, but revealing his jealousy of Ted’s popularity. Nate was the real hero of the team, and the world should know it.

Nate’s treatment of Ted was staggering, bringing viewers like me to disgust. He became a head coach elsewhere, mocking Ted and his former team in a press conference. This brought Ted under pressure from his boss and other staff to fight back. To attack Nate in the media, regaining respect for himself and the team. No one deserved Nate’s insults, let alone Ted, who only wanted to improve the lives and character of his players. But Nate now lived a life of prestige while Ted stood on the edge of a professional knife, ready to fall if he didn’t match Nate blow for blow. 

As I was watching, I passionately agreed with everyone telling Ted to fight back. That little pissant, I thought of Nate. Ted gave him so much. No respect or gratefulness. Ted has to do something. But while the show brought the audience to feel this way, Ted went the opposite way. In a public response, he complimented Nate on his quick wit for the jokes, and he wished Nate the best on his new team. The press room went silent as Ted then doubled down, agreeing with Nate’s insults, taunting himself facetiously. The press didn’t know how to react, but they came to praise Ted as a class act. By the end, everyone loathed Nate, who doesn’t take it well. Scrolling through Facebook posts** that condemned him as an awful person, Ted stood above him again in the eyes of the world.

At the end of the episode, I felt guilty for how I reacted to the story. I wanted Ted to insult Nate as everyone did, and the show was remarkable in hooking us with the injustice. But I’d forgotten that the better response to any such person is charity with humility. The Bible says as much: “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.”*** For Ted, to do what everyone wanted was counter to what was right. Even if it meant scorn from his boss and the public, his was an admirable response of grace.

Adding to my bit of shame was the fact that it was a fictional show that was teaching me how far I fell short of good character. Hadn’t I read the Bible enough to understand that Ted’s response was the best? Shouldn’t it have occurred to me that the right way to approach Nate was Ted’s? A Hollywood comedy was reminding me of the best way to live life – a way I had understood, but wasn’t taking to heart. I felt like I had been lured into a moral trap, and it should have been obvious to see how Ted ought to handle the situation. But my anger for Nate had overtaken everything else and for a moment, the show was no longer entertainment, but an experience. An opportunity to see how my thoughts were short of what was good.

Reflecting later on the episode, I saw a Catch 22 in the story.**** Everyone wanted Ted to have revenge by insulting Nate, hurting him as he had done to Ted. Instead, Ted replies with absolute grace and respect. The result? Nate is humiliated, revealing himself as a boorish ass while Ted gains in stature. It’s the story of Cain and Able, with Nate now suffering more than any insult could have done. His anger shot through the roof, and it was Ted’s grace that led him to feel that way. As it turns out, grace became the ultimate form of vengeance.

Ted’s response was a model example of an instruction from the Apostle Paul, also showing a bit of the Catch 22:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” – Romans 12:20-21

Whether or not the creators of Ted Lasso had Biblical teachings in mind, this is what I’ll take away from their show. Many will see Ted’s response to Nate as weakness, but it’s easy now to see it as coming from a source of strength. Ted stood resolute with grace and forgiveness. It was a calling of faith, and ironically, the path may have served as the biggest blow to his offender. Ted dumped metaphorical coals on Nate’s head, and his ego couldn’t take the bad press. May that be said of all our situations, where the bullies of our lives come to either repentance or derangement. Let us hope to overcome evil with good, as Coach Lasso did.

*It turns out, season three will not be the last one as number four is in progress. It seems like the creators should have quit while they were ahead, but all we can do is hope in their skills for another good season. And besides, if four stinks, we’ll just forget it existed, and remember the beauty and resolution of one through three.

**I have to say, it was so strange to see all computers in the world of Ted Lasso as Apple. Everyone’s phones, the office desks, hotel lobbies, etc., all were iPhones and iMacs. I understand Apple wouldn’t want to promote any other computer company, but this made the show feel like an alternate reality. In the real world, only a small percentage of hardware is Apple, only for it now to appear as as 100%. It was hard to get use to this world.

***Matthew 5:38-40.

****Maybe I shouldn’t claim something is a Catch 22 if I can’t quite explain what one is. Just look it up, and hopefully you see what I mean here.