- Hide menu

It’s Been a While

Well, it’s been a while since I last posted, and a lot has happened. A new-old President, Newtown, Fiscal Cliffs, Mars Rover pics, the so-called end of the world because some Mayan in the past ran out of room or just got bored to make the calendar longer, my move to warmer climes, etc. I’m not going to weigh in on all the old stuff, it’s been written about to death. I also am not going to sit here and write about what I’ve been up to for the past 3-4 months, it’s only newsworthy to me. So what will I write about? Something that is near and dear to me…the decline of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Some will say it’s because of the new Offensive Coordinator, the quarterback, the running game, or the defense. It’s none of these. It’s because of the lack of team cohesion. The wide receivers have lost focus because they have become full of themselves (see Mike Wallace). The quarterback is trying to be the hero, all the time. The defense…well, nothing to really complain about them, except that they are smarter, but older. Their decline is solely because of the Offense that thinks they are better than they are, and that they can coast, or that they are so self-important that only they can carry the team to victory.

What does a blog about sports have to do with a mainly business principle site? Everything. Professional sports are first and foremost in the business of entertainment. Each team builds their brand to create more revenue. If your team starts to lose because a lack of focus and teamwork, the brand will suffer. The longer it lasts, the more it hurts, and the harder it is to recover. See Jacksonville, Carolina, Kansas City, Detroit (yes, they make money, mainly from the TV contracts, that are shared, even if they never get on Prime Time, keeping them artificially afloat). There are a couple of chapters in my book that touch on the subject of having your employees on the same page, and working together. This is paramount for any business. The more of these non-team players you have, the more fatal the cancer in your company. So what’s the solution for the Steelers? Make an example of these players. Sit them. Cut them. Make them work for their spots, instead of handing it to them. And that includes the franchise QB. Draft a QB to “groom” and put the fear of being replaced into starter. My take.

jayesh.

Steelers

Bookmark and Share