I’ve spoken often in these commentaries about the importance of being a true team player.
This applies at any level, from elite youth sports to the professional ranks.
It is not easy to be a team player. Every athlete, every competitor, wants to be on the field of play, wants to contribute to their team’s success and wants to be recognized in some fashion.
This can put you at odds with the “team” concept when you are the one called upon to take a seat—especially if you are generally a “starter” and expect to play.
The fact that in sports we count not only wins and losses (a team stat) but goals and assists, or home runs and touchdowns (individual stats) makes it even more difficult.
We hear, for example, about the NFL running back that gains 2,000 yards in a season, but most fans could not name two of the offensive linemen who made the blocks to allow the all-star back to shine.
This makes the player who contributes in subtle but important ways less visible to most fans, though generally not to astute coaches.
One recent example of the difficulty in being a ‘team player’ came as the U.S. women’s soccer team was preparing to play the semi-final of a World Cup qualifier against Brazil.
The U.S. coach decided to play a veteran keeper over a younger goalie, Hope Solo, who had played well leading up to the Brazil game.
The U.S. lost 4-0 and afterwards, on her personal web site, Solo commented that,
"There's no doubt in my mind I would have made those saves," Solo said. "You have to live in the present. And you can't live by big names. You can't live in the past."
The implication was clear: the U.S. squad started the other goalie based on past reputation; she (Solo) would have made the stops the other goalie didn’t.
And Solo said so publicly.
Reaction to her comments was quite negative.
Seemingly trying to work her way through the reaction—so as not to appear as though she had “jumped ship”, in terms of standing by her teammates—an ESPN web story later related the following:
On Friday, Solo said while she still doubts Ryan's strategy, she did not mean to hurt Scurry.
"Although I stand strong in everything I said, the true disheartening moment for me was realizing it could look as though I was taking a direct shot at my own teammate," Solo said, according to the Web site. "I would never throw such a low blow. Never."
Is it easy to understand Solo’s frustration at being benched before the biggest game of the year?
Certainly.
But did she, in effect, cross the invisible line when she made her initial post-game comments?
Yes again.
A day later, the U.S. team’s Head Coach removed Solo from the squad, perhaps only temporarily. But she was not even on the bench when the U.S. won the event’s third-place game.
The coach’s comment:
“We have moved forward with 20 players who have stood by each other, who have battled for each other. And when the hard times came -- and the Brazil game was a hard time -- they stood strong."
The inference was clear: Solo, in making her comments—and subsequent apology notwithstanding—had indeed crossed that invisible line.
I have often reiterated that the media criticizes athletes for being vanilla, but in the same breath often admonishes them when they are candid and honest.
In this instance, Solo’s sin was not simply being honest and speaking her mind, but seemingly putting her own feelings above those of the team, in a public forum.
Is this fair?
Coaches want athletes who are confident, who believe in themselves. Solo was showing, by her comments, that she believed very strongly in herself.
But when she made the comments, she also, perhaps inadvertently, criticized her own teammate.
Reports suggest the U.S. may now bring in other goalies as part of the national squad going forward.
There is sometimes a price to pay for speaking out. In this instance, the comments will be remembered for a long time in the soccer world, and will no doubt follow Solo.
A steep price, for sure.
The cooling-off period between the game and the time she created her web comments might have provided Solo with the opportunity to massage the rough edges of her true feelings.
For reasons only she can answer, she chose to go a different route with her public comments.
Once made, you can’t take them back.
Showing posts with label respect for teammates. Show all posts
Showing posts with label respect for teammates. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
"I can't do it all by myself!"
It’s remarkable how seldom professional athletes will really and truly take responsibility for their actions and/or performance.
Sometimes, on the rare occasions when they do, the response is rather peculiar. Case in point: recent comments by Ottawa Senators defenseman Joe Corvo. Corvo said publicly he has not played up to par this season, and a newspaper headline in the Ottawa Sun thereafter read, “Corvo too honest?”
Corvo’s coach went so far as to say, “you’re always a little surprised when a player admits to lacking confidence publicly”, essentially suggesting it would have been better for Corvo not to acknowledge his poor play.
Corvo responded by saying, “Guys (athletes) are kind of programmed to say robotic responses…I don’t think I’m the first one that’s been honest.”
Compare and contrast Corvo’s honest, if uncommon, self-assessment with the recent reaction of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, after the Falcons finished a disappointing 7-9 and missed the NFC playoffs.
Said Vick, "I don't see how people can point the finger at me," he said. "I think I had a great season. ... I can't do it all by myself. I call myself Superman, but I really don't have the cape on my back. I can't change the game in certain situations. Sometimes I can, sometimes I can't."
He’s not the first “star” athlete to decline accepting responsibility for the performance of the team he is paid handsomely to lead. Quarterbacks in particular accept widespread acclaim when their teams achieve success but some aren’t as keen to accept any criticism that comes their way when things go off the rails.
When an athlete says, “I can’t do it all by myself…” he is sending a terrible – and likely unappreciated— message to his teammates, especially when the words come from a so-called “team leader” such as Vick.
No athlete in a team sport – not Bobby Orr, Michael Jordan or Jim Brown—won games or championships on their own. Every player on their respective teams made contributions. Orr, Jordan and Brown may have shown their true greatness by helping make the players around them better, but those players nonetheless all made valuable contributions game by game and throughout the playoffs until the championship was won.
The moment an athlete starts thinking – and goes so far as to start saying publicly – he is “doing it all by himself”, chances are he is, emotionally, “losing” the very people he needs to achieve success, his teammates.
There is a wonderful life lesson here for young athletes – and for young people in general.
The real issue is not so much, perhaps, that Vick said what he said. Rather, the problem is that he felt that way in the first place.
How could anyone who has seen teammates work in the off-season, play through injuries and do their utmost to play at the highest level in their sport, has the support and guidance of top coaches to help him prepare to be successful every day, really feel as though he is “doing it alone”.
With this story as a backdrop, aspiring elite athletes would do well to look inside themselves, and do an attitude check.
If you think you’re doing it “by yourself”, think again.
And if you truly can’t convince yourself that you are not a one-man band, for goodness sake, don’t say so out loud.
You’ll lose the respect of teammates, coaches, scouts and fans—and anyone who had an interest in your career.
The Vick quote reminds me of a similar comment made by a young NHL draft prospect several years ago, when asked by the media why his “stats” had fallen off.
He said, “If I had better linemates and been given more playing time, I would have scored more…”
In one sentence, the player essentially trashed his teammates and his coach and publicly laid blame on others for his own shortcomings.
We all understand that teenage athletes may sometimes say things they shouldn’t. No one should be that programmed.
But that player likely lost something in the minds of his teammates, coaches – and the scouts who were assessing him—when he made that comment.
If you’re a parent, you may want to encourage your child not to follow the Michael Vick approach to leadership.
Sometimes, on the rare occasions when they do, the response is rather peculiar. Case in point: recent comments by Ottawa Senators defenseman Joe Corvo. Corvo said publicly he has not played up to par this season, and a newspaper headline in the Ottawa Sun thereafter read, “Corvo too honest?”
Corvo’s coach went so far as to say, “you’re always a little surprised when a player admits to lacking confidence publicly”, essentially suggesting it would have been better for Corvo not to acknowledge his poor play.
Corvo responded by saying, “Guys (athletes) are kind of programmed to say robotic responses…I don’t think I’m the first one that’s been honest.”
Compare and contrast Corvo’s honest, if uncommon, self-assessment with the recent reaction of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, after the Falcons finished a disappointing 7-9 and missed the NFC playoffs.
Said Vick, "I don't see how people can point the finger at me," he said. "I think I had a great season. ... I can't do it all by myself. I call myself Superman, but I really don't have the cape on my back. I can't change the game in certain situations. Sometimes I can, sometimes I can't."
He’s not the first “star” athlete to decline accepting responsibility for the performance of the team he is paid handsomely to lead. Quarterbacks in particular accept widespread acclaim when their teams achieve success but some aren’t as keen to accept any criticism that comes their way when things go off the rails.
When an athlete says, “I can’t do it all by myself…” he is sending a terrible – and likely unappreciated— message to his teammates, especially when the words come from a so-called “team leader” such as Vick.
No athlete in a team sport – not Bobby Orr, Michael Jordan or Jim Brown—won games or championships on their own. Every player on their respective teams made contributions. Orr, Jordan and Brown may have shown their true greatness by helping make the players around them better, but those players nonetheless all made valuable contributions game by game and throughout the playoffs until the championship was won.
The moment an athlete starts thinking – and goes so far as to start saying publicly – he is “doing it all by himself”, chances are he is, emotionally, “losing” the very people he needs to achieve success, his teammates.
There is a wonderful life lesson here for young athletes – and for young people in general.
The real issue is not so much, perhaps, that Vick said what he said. Rather, the problem is that he felt that way in the first place.
How could anyone who has seen teammates work in the off-season, play through injuries and do their utmost to play at the highest level in their sport, has the support and guidance of top coaches to help him prepare to be successful every day, really feel as though he is “doing it alone”.
With this story as a backdrop, aspiring elite athletes would do well to look inside themselves, and do an attitude check.
If you think you’re doing it “by yourself”, think again.
And if you truly can’t convince yourself that you are not a one-man band, for goodness sake, don’t say so out loud.
You’ll lose the respect of teammates, coaches, scouts and fans—and anyone who had an interest in your career.
The Vick quote reminds me of a similar comment made by a young NHL draft prospect several years ago, when asked by the media why his “stats” had fallen off.
He said, “If I had better linemates and been given more playing time, I would have scored more…”
In one sentence, the player essentially trashed his teammates and his coach and publicly laid blame on others for his own shortcomings.
We all understand that teenage athletes may sometimes say things they shouldn’t. No one should be that programmed.
But that player likely lost something in the minds of his teammates, coaches – and the scouts who were assessing him—when he made that comment.
If you’re a parent, you may want to encourage your child not to follow the Michael Vick approach to leadership.
Monday, August 1, 2005
Terrell, Terrell, Terrell...
The Philadelphia Eagles took a ‘risk’ last season by bringing in Terrell Owens.
It’s important to note that the Eagles are an organization that does not like — or look for — controversy.
From a communications perspective, Andy Reid adopts what is often referred to as a “vanilla” approach. He is generally accessible, polite, responsive— but says absolutely nothing that could lead to a media frenzy.
Every week he starts his Monday post-game press conferences by saying he “looks forward to the challenge” of playing whatever team the Eagles are scheduled to play next.
When asked how a certain player is doing, he will say, “He’s doing a nice job”. He uses the word ‘nice’ frequently.
That said, he is an outstanding football coach, who made a decision just over a year ago that trading for Owens, an All-Pro wide receiver, could help his team get over the hump. Three years in a row the Eagles went to the NFC championship game, and three times they came away without a championship.
In 2004, with Owens in the line up, the Eagles offense soared. Owens and Donavan McNabb seemed to share a kinship of sorts, which was interesting as Owens had spent an inordinate amount of time publicly trashing his previous quarterback, Jeff Garcia.
The comments ignored the fact that Garcia was a tough, durable quarterback who had played quite well with the 49’ers.
Just not, apparently, up to Owens’ standards.
So Owens, in his early days with the Eagles, had the world by the tail. By all accounts he was engaging with the media, the fans and teammates.
The honeymoon was on.
When he went down with a serious injury late last season, many predicted the Eagles would falter.
Yet they charged through the playoffs without Owens, capturing the NFC title along the way, before Owens made an unexpected comeback to star in the Super Bowl loss to the Patriots.
Fast forward to this past spring, and Owens wanted to renegotiate his contract, after completing only 1 year of a 7-year deal.
Meantime, he had made comments in the off-season that were highly derogatory about his ‘pal’, McNabb. He remarked that he wasn’t “the player who got tired” at the end of the Super Bowl.
Another example of, “I’m great, someone else is the problem…”.
The Eagles don’t renegotiate contracts, so he reported to camp unhappy — only to be tossed out by Reid after a series of interpersonal issues arose.
Can Owens return to the team a happy man? A “team” player?
No.
That possibility left long ago. He has made it clear by trashing McNabb on several occasions, just as he trashed Garcia before him. The pattern is there.
Reports suggest he has ignored most of his teammates this summer at training camp. He has evidently snapped at coaches. He has played up to the media — when he wanted to— to get his message out and made it clear he will not be happy unless he gets a new deal, or a new team.
The point?
The biggest issue in professional sports today is attitude. The attitude of too many athletes is slowly eroding fan interest.
Oh, there will always be a love of sports. But more and more, many fans are tuning out, as the apathy over the NHL lockout demonstrated.
Steroids may be the biggest health issue in sports — an issue that smacks of hypocrisy on so many levels it requires a separate commentary. But too many athletes are grossly overpaid, and until we — fans, athletes, owners, agents, media — step back and start re-thinking some basic values, we will have more and more individuals like Owens who are wonderfully talented individuals, but are the last guys most people would want as a teammate.
It’s funny how things seemed to go swimmingly last season with Owens and the Eagles. But that is often the way when an often-disgruntled athlete starts “fresh” with a new team. Everyone wants to give the impression that all is well.
Unfortunately, old behavior patterns — like old habits — die hard.
It’s easy to be a “good teammate” when you have the world by the tail. The truly classy individuals— the ones who at least try to fight the instinct to simply be about themselves — are those that work hard every day, sign a contract and live by it, make those around you better, and try to act with at least a degree of humility.
It doesn’t mean you can’t be your own person. It doesn’t mean you lack integrity. It just means that, in part, you at least acknowledge you are not bigger than the game you play, and not more important than the people around you.
Simon and Garfunkel asked where Joe DiMaggio had gone. Some of us are still looking for the modern-day equivalent of Jean Beliveau: an elegant, talented athlete who respected fans, teammates, the media, and the game.
It’s important to note that the Eagles are an organization that does not like — or look for — controversy.
From a communications perspective, Andy Reid adopts what is often referred to as a “vanilla” approach. He is generally accessible, polite, responsive— but says absolutely nothing that could lead to a media frenzy.
Every week he starts his Monday post-game press conferences by saying he “looks forward to the challenge” of playing whatever team the Eagles are scheduled to play next.
When asked how a certain player is doing, he will say, “He’s doing a nice job”. He uses the word ‘nice’ frequently.
That said, he is an outstanding football coach, who made a decision just over a year ago that trading for Owens, an All-Pro wide receiver, could help his team get over the hump. Three years in a row the Eagles went to the NFC championship game, and three times they came away without a championship.
In 2004, with Owens in the line up, the Eagles offense soared. Owens and Donavan McNabb seemed to share a kinship of sorts, which was interesting as Owens had spent an inordinate amount of time publicly trashing his previous quarterback, Jeff Garcia.
The comments ignored the fact that Garcia was a tough, durable quarterback who had played quite well with the 49’ers.
Just not, apparently, up to Owens’ standards.
So Owens, in his early days with the Eagles, had the world by the tail. By all accounts he was engaging with the media, the fans and teammates.
The honeymoon was on.
When he went down with a serious injury late last season, many predicted the Eagles would falter.
Yet they charged through the playoffs without Owens, capturing the NFC title along the way, before Owens made an unexpected comeback to star in the Super Bowl loss to the Patriots.
Fast forward to this past spring, and Owens wanted to renegotiate his contract, after completing only 1 year of a 7-year deal.
Meantime, he had made comments in the off-season that were highly derogatory about his ‘pal’, McNabb. He remarked that he wasn’t “the player who got tired” at the end of the Super Bowl.
Another example of, “I’m great, someone else is the problem…”.
The Eagles don’t renegotiate contracts, so he reported to camp unhappy — only to be tossed out by Reid after a series of interpersonal issues arose.
Can Owens return to the team a happy man? A “team” player?
No.
That possibility left long ago. He has made it clear by trashing McNabb on several occasions, just as he trashed Garcia before him. The pattern is there.
Reports suggest he has ignored most of his teammates this summer at training camp. He has evidently snapped at coaches. He has played up to the media — when he wanted to— to get his message out and made it clear he will not be happy unless he gets a new deal, or a new team.
The point?
The biggest issue in professional sports today is attitude. The attitude of too many athletes is slowly eroding fan interest.
Oh, there will always be a love of sports. But more and more, many fans are tuning out, as the apathy over the NHL lockout demonstrated.
Steroids may be the biggest health issue in sports — an issue that smacks of hypocrisy on so many levels it requires a separate commentary. But too many athletes are grossly overpaid, and until we — fans, athletes, owners, agents, media — step back and start re-thinking some basic values, we will have more and more individuals like Owens who are wonderfully talented individuals, but are the last guys most people would want as a teammate.
It’s funny how things seemed to go swimmingly last season with Owens and the Eagles. But that is often the way when an often-disgruntled athlete starts “fresh” with a new team. Everyone wants to give the impression that all is well.
Unfortunately, old behavior patterns — like old habits — die hard.
It’s easy to be a “good teammate” when you have the world by the tail. The truly classy individuals— the ones who at least try to fight the instinct to simply be about themselves — are those that work hard every day, sign a contract and live by it, make those around you better, and try to act with at least a degree of humility.
It doesn’t mean you can’t be your own person. It doesn’t mean you lack integrity. It just means that, in part, you at least acknowledge you are not bigger than the game you play, and not more important than the people around you.
Simon and Garfunkel asked where Joe DiMaggio had gone. Some of us are still looking for the modern-day equivalent of Jean Beliveau: an elegant, talented athlete who respected fans, teammates, the media, and the game.
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