The Super Bowl

We are less than two weeks away from America’s most viewed sporting event of the year.  The National Football League Championship game, otherwise known as the Super Bowl, will be played on Sunday, February 5th between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants. 

An Interesting Interview

In an earlier blog I wrote about the importance of teamwork and it’s affect on a team’s success.  Before the games that were played this past weekend to determine who would be headed to the Super Bowl, I watched an interesting interview with one of the Giant’s players.  The interviewer was discussing the plight of the Giants toward the middle of the season.  They had just lost four games in a row and things were looking bleak.  He was curious as to how the Giants turned things around.  He posed that question to the player.  The player didn’t hesitate in his response.  “Through it all,” he replied, “We never tried to come up with a scapegoat.  No one on the team ever ‘pointed fingers’ at anyone else.”

A Sharp Contrast

The perspective given by the interviewee was in sharp contrast to the one displayed by a Baltimore Ravens’ players.  The Ravens, eventual losers to the Patriots, were immersed in controversy all week as they prepared for the big game.  One of the Ravens’ players was less than complimentary about the prior week’s performance of  the team’s quarterback.  Essentially he questioned if the quarterback was equipped to play under the pressure of a big game. 

No Surprise There

The fact that the Giants won their game and the Ravens lost theirs seems a bit more than a coincidence.  Whether on the football field or in the office, when teams allow themselves to become distracted, to lose focus on the goals at hand and instead concentrate on the faults of others, the results are seldom positive.

Tell Tale Signs

It will be interesting to see how the next two weeks play out.  The Patriots and Giants appear to be cohesive , well disciplined  teams.  Yet as players become inundated with interview after interview, note how they respond to questions about their teammates.  Those responses may well give you an indication as to who will come out victorious.

What are some other signs of a cohesive team that you have observed?  Please let us know in the comment section below.

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