What does football have to do with pregnancy centers? Nothing, usually. But one NFL player changed that for a Maryland Care Net affiliate this month.

New Orleans Saints tight end Benjamin Watson and his wife donated a 3D/4D ultrasound to Severna Park Pregnancy Clinic. “Seeing life inside the womb not only affirms its beauty and dignity but encourages the mother and father that their child is worth fighting for,” he wrote in a Facebook post announcing the gift.

Pam Palumbo, the CEO of three pregnancy centers including Severna Park Pregnancy Clinic, told LifeNews the ultrasound machine could allow staff to “pick up the heartbeat” of an unborn baby “even when the baby is too small to be visually clear.”

Watson made the gift through an ultrasound program offered by Focus on the Family and the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC). The program provides grants to qualifying pregnancy medical clinics that cover 80 percent of the cost of an ultrasound machine or sonography training.

“We are thrilled that the Severna Park Pregnancy Center is the recipient of such a generous gift from our mutual friends at ERLC,” Care Net Vice President of Center Services and Client Care Cindy Hopkins said, “May this ultrasound machine...and all that use it...be mighty instruments of hope, light, and truth in your community! God bless the ERLC team for their dedication to being a voice for the unborn in the public square and Ben Watson for his courage to step out and make his convictions known to the world. ”

Watson is a father of five. Last year, he published “The New Dad’s Playbook: Gearing Up for the Biggest Game of Your Life” to help new fathers support their partners through pregnancy, childbirth, and beyond.

“The overarching theme is just helping dads and empowering them when it comes to supporting their women through pregnancy and being the dads they were created to be,” Watson said in a ESPN interview.