Thomas Edison said: “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.” I do not think Edison was ever a football coach.
The message for this post is not about trying to look back to the beginning of January 2010 and the decision to keep Coughlin. Coughlin IS the Giants coach for 2010. We look around for lessons… not that the grass is greener in the neighbor’s yard, but to learn about what works and what does not work.
The message here is about one of the primary duties a head coach faces in winning a title. In order to go over the top it takes a tremendous amount of intangibles. A good plan + inspiration + motivation in coaching is enormous. When you see what Rex Ryan did this year, win or lose today he has brought motivation and inspired his players.
1% inspiration won’t cut it in the NFL. Is it a total coincidence that we noted how players will walk through a wall for you if you do it the right way as a coach… and specifically mentioned Rex Ryan by name after the 1st week of the season?!!!! I think not. It was EVIDENT from a mile AWAY.
MUST READ LINK: WHEN THE JETS INTERVIEWED HEAD COACHING CANDIDATES.
Back to Planet Giants, do you think the Giants players are rallying around Coughlin? They emptied their tanks for Coughlin when he lightened up in 2007 and gave them trust. We can all debate what is going on right now, but one thing is clear- they did not play for him at the end of the season, even when the team was in playoff contention. This was the same player dump rebellion we saw in 2006, when they would score 7 points and then pack their bags. Watch the video with Sal Palantonio and Linda Cohn. Coughlin supporters will point to this and see it as evidence that Coughlin just needed time to turn it around, that the team won a Super Bowl just one season later. Coughlin detractors will note that Coughlin had to be directed to change BY OTHERS in order for that turnaround to take place, and that now, three seasons later, Coughlin has put the team right back to the same exact place all over again. Where is the inspiration? It is out there. You just have to interview 7 people and perhaps one of them will have it.
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