The Celebrity Quarterback Loses Super Bowl

Tom Brady played great at times but he lost.

He had a record 16 straight completions in the first half. He was on his game. Celebrity quarterback Tom Brady (see post Celebrity vs Non-Celebrity) was playing great. So was the Non-Celebrity Eli Manning, but in the biggest game at the most important time, Eli Manning came up with a shockingly brilliant pass to Mario Manningham on the side line. It was a pass so special that people will be talking about it and reviewing it as long as they play professional football. 

Tom Brady couldn't come up with a similar play.   
He actually was slightly off throwing behind league #1 receiver Wes Welker at the end. Ordinarily Wes Walker catches that ball, this one he dropped. Had it been on target no way does it get dropped. And of course on the next play another star receiver, tight end Aaron Hernandez inexplicably dropped a perfect wide open pass and so there’s really no blame you can put on Brady. But there were other questionable throws when a great pass could have made a big difference. When the Patriots desperately needed the great play, when the receiver was there to make that play…the perfect pass never came. Brady has a history of delivering in the clutch, but not this time. Odd.

There’s “no blame” for Brady but there’s also no spectacular miracle pass to win the game either.  
There is no way you can say this is the reason the Patriots lost but it is worth noting because it highlights the fine line between winning and losing. Usually the big games are won by a great play, not by just having a “no blame” game. The quarterback is the key player and the pressure is certainly on him when time is running out and the game is one the line. For whatever reason, this time the non-celebrity quarterback came up with one of those plays and the celebrity quarterback didn’t. Was that the reason the Giants won? I don’t know but there’s no question it was a factor.

The fine line.
Football games have so many players, so many plays, so many variables that anybody’s theory can sound plausible as to why one team wins and the other team loses. But it points out clearly how hard you’ve got to work, how hard you’ve got to prepare, and how hard you’ve got to perform to reach the top.  Any little thing can make the difference.

You see it in other sports as well
That’s why there was only a fraction of an inch difference between winning and losing in 2 of the 8 races at the last Olympics where swimming hero Michael Phelps won his 8 gold medals. Recently, Novak Djokovic just barely edged out Rafael Nadal after a spectacular, intense, five hour finals tennis match at the Australian open. One bounce of the ball after 5 hours of intense competition—and one wins—the other loses.  

That’s why some people would always pick a non-celebrity over a celebrity.  
They realize that to win, no matter how talented they are, they’re going to have to give it everything they’ve got because there’s such a fine line of difference between mediocrity and greatness. It doesn’t matter how famous they are or how many times they’ve won before.

In any given game it comes down to who is the best prepared and wants it most. 
If you are choosing between a celebrity and a non-celebrity, some think that the non-celebrity is the one who is likely to be the hungriest. They think that the non-celebrity also is the one most likely to have the fewest distractions, to have the most focus and to be the most willing to all the non glamorous and painstaking grinding and grunt work needed to be the best prepared. Even if the celebrity only cuts corners slightly or is only slightly less focused, that could be enough to make a difference. The difference shows up when the intensity is the highest. 

Was that the difference in this Super Bowl? You tell me. 

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Related Posts

Celebrities Vs Non-Celebrities In The Super Bowl
Tom Coughlin, The People’s Coach
The Winning Edge Is Razor Thin

Celebrities vs Non-Celebrities in the Super Bowl

Here’s an interesting sub-plot for this year's Super Bowl—the celebrity versus the non-celebrity.

It won’t be with the coaches because they are both non-celebrities. The NY Giant’s Coach Tom Coughlin doesn’t have the interest, personality, face or wit to be a darling of the media. He is 100% football all the time. You won’t see him on a lot of commercials (any? ever?) You won’t see him on a lot of late night talk shows or on the red carpet rubbing shoulders with movie stars.

The New England Patriot’s Bill Belichick also falls in the non-celebrity camp. He’s a lot closer to going over the celebrity line than Coughlin, but in spite of the fact that he has tons of famous friends and enjoys getting out a lot in the off-season, he still studiously avoids the limelight. No one doubts his priorities. He has never been accused of seeking the spotlight. His mind is clearly on keeping his head down, keeping the distractions to a minimum and getting his job done. 

The celebrity vs non-celebrity battle will be fought at quarterback
Hall of Fame Coach Bill Parcells says, when looking for a franchise quarterback, look for a non-celebrity. His thinks that puts the odds of success in your favor. Some say he feels that way because he wants the entire spotlight for himself. Everyone has an opinion, but there is no mistaking that some are celebrities and some aren’t. It’s interesting to see how they compete when the pressure is the highest. Some can handle it, some can’t.

This year we have one of each
Eli Manning avoids the spotlight. It is an amazing tribute to his determination to maintain a low profile and avoid the spotlight that he is the quarterback in New York, the media capital of the world, he has performed at an elite level and even won a Super Bowl, yet he is almost invisible off the field. He has no trouble keeping his focus.

New England's quarterback is another story. As the winner of 3 Super Bowls and the husband of the world’s greatest super model Gisele Bündchen, he is always in the celebrity spotlight. He also finds his way regularly into the magazines, celebrity golf tournaments, talk shows. No one questions his competitive drive or commitment but there is no questioning his celebrity status. There’s also no question he hasn’t been playing at his best lately—and Manning has.

Being a celebrity is not a kiss of death
Joe Namath was an incredibly huge celebrity when he made his prediction to win the Super Bowl and delivered, shocking the world in the process. Others have done well in various sports as well. You could put David Beckham up there as a big example, but closer examination reveals most had their biggest success BEFORE they reached the spotlight status. Michael Phelps was celebrated but not a “celebrity” before he won his 8 Gold medals at the China Olympics. Since then he has become a bonafide celebrity and has found putting in the same amount of focused training as lot harder. His results have been nowhere near as spectacular. 

Brady won his 3 Super Bowls climbing the ladder to celebrity
He wasn’t the star he is today. When he won his early Super Bowls, he was barely known outside of football. Winning 3 times on the biggest stage in sports and television worldwide shot him into the celebrity zone and when he married Gisele Bündchen he solidified his celebrity status forever. If there was a Celebrity Hall of Fame he would already be in it! Yet, since reaching celebrity staus he hasn’t won nearly as much. They haven’t won nearly as much, they haven’t won in the playoffs as much and the one time they got back to the Super Bowl, they lost. It could be that Tom has been a celebrity for so long now he can handle it and still perform at his peak. We’ll see.

The fun of the Super Bowl is all the games within the game. 
This is just one you can keep your eye on to add a little extra interest. There are a lot of factors that go into winning, maybe this will be one. Will Manning be more focused and driven than the one who already “has it all?”

Will Brady’s distractions and more “exciting” life divert him from playing at his peak? It did last week. By his own admission “he sucked” compared to how he usually played as opposed to Manning who has been red-hot and deadly accurate in all the recent games.

Will it make a difference? We’ll find out Sunday!

Tom Coughlin, The People’s Coach

Most of us can relate to Tom.

In spite of obvious ability, hard work and past achievements, poor Tom always seems to be on the hot seat.

Things just seem to find a way to go against him. Player injuries, strange losing streaks, player dissension are common for every NFL team. But for Tom it always seems to be a little worse. Its like the guy just can’t get ahead. The least you can say is that he seems to have to work harder than everyone else. He knows he can’t leave anything to chance because no one is going to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Things don’t come easy for Coach Coughlin
He wasn’t a child coaching prodigy. He had to work his way up the coaching ranks from the bottom one tough step at the time. He was overlooked and taken for granted. Over a long time he developed a great reputation. Only through tons of hard and extra work did he move up and reach the point where he could even interview for head coaching job. At 49 he finally got his chance and was hired to be the first coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars. In 7 years he took this expansion team to 2 AFC Championship games. His reward for this incredible achievement? Fired. 

Most of us can relate to his struggles
We go through life and see the breaks go against us. We find ourselves often ignored, past over and taken for granted. So much of our life seems like it’s tied up in grinding out work that no one notices or appreciates. We keep ourselves on track doing the quiet, thankless jobs that we know are important but we don’t ever see it pay off in anything big for us. Also no matter how much effort we put into our work it often seems like it’s not good enough.

The few times we have pulled off some great achievement and gotten recognized - finally - the moment is quickly forgotten by those in authority. In no time at all it seems like it never happened. We are still treated like we are just faces in the crowd. 

Tom is always on the hot seat
He took over as head coach of the New York Giants in 2004, inheriting a 4-12 team. He quietly went to work to turn things around. Four years later the Giants won the Super Bowl in one of the biggest upsets ever! But amazingly he still has been on the hot seat constantly ever since. You have to assume he works hard and takes his job seriously but when his team gets hit with injuries, bad play by key players or any of the hundreds of things that happen to a football team to create slumps, immediately there are calls for his job. It’s like overnight it’s all his fault because he’s no longer good enough. He can’t reach today’s players, he can’t relate, he doesn’t have charisma, he doesn’t have good enough coaches, etc. Result? Tom is always on the hot seat.

But how does Tom respond? Like you do.
He knows no one feels sorry for him. He keeps his head down. He keeps working. He keeps encouraging his team. He keeps looking for ways to improve. He keeps believing things will work out if he keeps working. He keeps believing that the odds will even out over the long haul if he stays on track. He keeps believing his luck will turn for the better. And the amazing thing is that they do. His teams are tough. You can never count them out. Just when the criticism is the loudest and people have totally given up on his team they come back strong and surprise everyone. This year is no exception. They had such a mid season slump many felt Tom would be fired before the season ended. Tom kept working. He kept the team focused and improving. Result? THEY ARE IN THE SUPER BOWL! They didn’t quit, they kept fighting and the results eventually started to show.

Tom has a style we can relate to
He isn’t known as a genius. He’s not a celebrity. He doesn’t dominate television with commercials and appearances on talk shows. He just works hard and keeps on working hard  even when faced with withering criticism or disastrous results. He keeps the faith. He keeps moving forward. He knows hard work can overcome almost all obstacles. He doesn’t make excuses. He doesn’t blame others. He just works…..and because of that he eventually wins!

Tom Coughlin’s  example of winning primarily through toughness and hard work is an example for us all. We can relate to his struggles. He is the “People’s Coach!”

Coach Harbaugh’s Biggest Message

What did he do to turn around the San Francisco 49ers?

Last season the 49ers record was 6 wins 10 losses. Coach Mike Singletary was fired. New coach Jim Harbaugh was hired. With essentially the same roster and no off season to practice due to the NFL lockout that would have allowed him some time to introduce his system, Coach Harbaugh led them to a 13 win 3 loss record and won their Division! On January 14, they beat the red hot New Orleans Saints to win their first playoff game. 

What made the difference?
A player from the team was talking recently and said it came down to creating a true family atmosphere and adding a real sense of excitement and enthusiasm. The players felt accepted and a part of something special in a way they never had before. But there was one more thing.

He sold them on one fact
Coach Harbaugh told them they were good enough! He told them it didn’t matter what had happened in the past.

He told them that if they played like they knew they could they didn’t have to worry about needing anything or anybody else. If they did what they could do and wanted to do and were capable of doing THEY WERE GOOD ENOUGH! That gave them confidence. That caused them to relax and focus on playing to their potential. That caused them to believe in each other like never before. They stopped feeling inferior. They stopped focusing on their weakness and failures. They started thinking about what they were capable of doing. Result? They had a record season and are still in the hunt to win the Super Bowl!

What’s the lesson? 
Maybe your people haven’t done anything special yet. But what most leaders do is constantly focus on what their team is doing wrong and how they don’t measure up. No one knows how good anyone can be but no one is going to play to their potential when they are browbeaten and made to feel like failures before they start. If you are constantly pounded about the things you do wrong, of course it’s natural to feel that you aren’t really good enough to win because you’ll forget that there are any areas you are actually any good in. So when the heat of competition comes, the pressure meets your doubts and you fold.

If you want to bring out the best in your team, let them know in no uncertain terms that …they are good enough to Win - and that you believe in them!

What Alabama Beating LSU Means for You

Some great lessons for competing in 2012

Many were shocked when Alabama shut out LSU in BCS Championship game January 9. It wasn’t that they won but how they won. LSU was unbeaten. LSU was frighteningly talented. LSU was powerful at every position.

They had even beaten Alabama previously at Alabama. This time the game was to be played in New Orleans just down the road from Baton Rouge. It was essentially a home game for LSU.  

That’s what so great about competition
It didn’t matter that the odds were in LSU’s favor. Once the game began it was all about who was going to get the job done then! None of the past mattered—beyond the fact that it put them in position to do well. For some reason, maybe it was the ferocity of the Alabama players who wanted to redeem themselves, LSU was uncharacteristically jittery as they started the game. They were stumbling, fumbling, and out of rhythm. They certainly weren’t relaxed, confident, and aggressive.

Alabama sensed their hesitation and indecision and kept the pressure on. They were so effective the unthinkable happened, LSU not only got beat, they didn’t even score! They have no moral victories to take out of the game. They didn’t end on a high note. The decision was totally in Alabama’s favor. Alabama won big!  

What does that mean for you in 2012?
You can win big in 2012! You can win decisively in 2012! Things that have stood in your way in the past can be beaten. It doesn’t matter what has happened beforehand. It doesn’t matter what people think. It doesn’t matter how the odds may be stacked against you if you’re willing to compete you can still win.  

Alabama’s huge win over LSU is a loud message to all of us that if we’ll fight and compete we can win in 2012.

Nowitzki Gives Romo Bad Advice

Well meaning advice isn’t always true

When the Dallas Cowboys were getting beat week after week early in the 2011 season they got a lot of criticism. They were hugely talented and expectations were for them to be legitimate Super Bowl contenders.  Super Bowl contenders are supposed to win. When they kept getting beat the criticism came in loud and clear from all corners. To the rescue came local basketball hero Dirk Nowitzki fresh off the Dallas Mavericks recent NBA championship.

Dirk gave encouragement—and really bad advice
Dirk told quarterback Tony Romo and the others that they shouldn’t worry. He reminded them the Mavericks, formed in 1980, had gone without ever winning an NBA Championship until this year and Dirk himself had been with the team since 1998. But, Dirk continued, “if you just keep on working to improve eventually your day will come and you’ll win a Super Bowl.”

Wrong, wrong, wrong! The Cowboys bought this lie—hook, line and sinker. The pressure was off—they could relax. The sting of defeat was not nearly as bad because they now happily believed that eventually they would win. It was inevitable...Dirk said so! 

No one is ever guaranteed a championship
Unfortunately, championships are never inevitable. You have to go win them. You have to beat someone who wants it just as bad as you. You have to fight. You have to give it everything you have. If the Cowboys were aware of the perhaps they wouldn’t have finished this season with such a spineless underachieving performance and let themselves get knocked out of the playoffs by the mediocre New York Giants.

This team needs a reality check - bad. They need to be jolted with the truth that no one is ever guaranteed success. Just because you’re talented and think you work hard doesn’t entitle you to anything. The world owes you nothing. Don’t ever think they are going to mail you a trophy just because you worked up a sweat. Sweat and hard work is what everyone does. 

All hard work does is give you is a CHANCE to win
In the real world you can work hard for years and years, pay an incredible price, make incredible sacrifices and still never win the “big one.” When you work hard, you take things seriously. You sacrifice and pay the extra prices. But that’s just practice and preparation. All you’re doing is putting yourself in a position to win your championship. Sooner or later the time will come where you actually have to go play the game, compete and win it. The Dallas Cowboys don’t act like they understand this part of winning and as a result, for almost 20 years, they have underachieved at the end of the season, piling up one disappointment after another for their fans to endure.

There is a fine line between mediocrity and greatness and when you think you are entitled to win you always get beat. Wake up, Cowboys.

Jerry Jones is Living in Denial

Someone needs to dump a bucket of truth on his head

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is living in anticipation of the day when the team will drop a big bucket of Gatorade on his head for winning the Super Bowl. But that’s never going to happen, unless someone drops a big bucket of truth on his head first.

Greatness in one area doesn’t necessarily lead to greatness in another
No one doubts Jerry Jones genius as a business man. He bought the Dallas Cowboys for $147 million and built it into one of the most valuable franchises in all of pro sports. In addition, he has recently built the equivalent of the Roman Coliseum of professional sports stadiums. The new billion dollar Cowboy Stadium is absolutely breathtaking on many levels. Everyone loves it! He had a vision. He built the support. He got the financing.  He put together the design and he got it built to glowing reviews. What he did in building the team and the stadium are two incredibly staggering achievements.  

Unfortunately he’s also the Cowboy’s General Manager
Once again, after the Cowboy’s were eliminated from the playoffs Jerry Jones was asked if he was going to give up the general manager’s job and hire someone else. In his reply, you can find the exact problem with the Cowboy’s on field lack of performance and likely source of future disappointment. Jerry said “I’ve been doing the same job for 22 years and I’m going to continue.” He said, “the heat for our failures should fall on the person most responsible and that’s me. A full time owner always makes the final decisions and if we had a general manager it would only confuse and clutter up the decision making process.”

Wrong. A full time owner hires a general manager to be the one to make the final decisions on football operations. There doesn’t need to be conflict. There needs to be freedom to do the job without interference. 

Reality check! Isn’t that the mark of insanity?
He’s been General Manager for 22 years. They have won 1 playoff game in 15 years. Shouldn’t he be noticing a connection? Isn’t that the mark of insanity... doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result? Isn’t that’s what Jerry Jones is doing? His insistence on remaining general manager is sabotaging and undermining all of his other tremendous efforts. Sure, the Cowboys won 3 Super Bowls 20 years ago, but what worked then isn’t working now.

Here’s what Jerry needs to hear. 
No one is good at everything. No one is expected to be good at everything. Championships are won by putting teams of great people together. Your track record says you are not a great general manager. Of course you’ve had some successes but your overall record is failure. You only have 1 playoff win in the last 15 years.  Every year the result is the same. High priced, highly talented teams that underachieve.

The first step in solving any problem is to accept reality. As Bill Parcel says, your record tells you who you are.  Jerry, your record says you are no longer a top general manager. 

He’s putting himself above the team.
It seems that he doesn’t just want the Cowboys to win the Super Bowl, he wants the glory of being the General Manager that got them there as well. He wants that glory. He wants that recognition and respect. He wants it so bad it had blinded him to what he’s doing to his team. He’s become the problem. Whenever anyone puts themselves above the team, the team always suffers. The Dallas Cowboys are suffering....defeat after defeat...year after year.

Until Jerry Jones wakes up and accepts reality, it’s highly unlikely the Cowboys are going anywhere, much less to the Super Bowl.