TunneySide of Sports

On The TunneySide of Sports January 14, 2019 #727 Up next… The Bounce of the Ball!

After further review… If you watched the NFC Wild Card game last weekend between Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears, perhaps you felt the disappointment of Cody Parkey, the Bears kicker. He missed a 43-yard field goal as time expired that gave the Eagles a 16-15 victory moving them onto a divisional playoff game with the New Orleans Saints. (Ed. Note this was written before the divisional games were played.)

The kick by Parkey was his second kick on that same down. His first kick went pretty much down-the-pike, as they say. But wait, the Eagles head coach Doug Pederson, called time-out just before the ball was snapped. By then, Parkey had begun his kicking-motion. However, with this “icing-the-kicker” call by the Eagles, the kick didn’t count. His re-try kick was long enough, but the ball hit the left goal post and then bounced on the crossbar and fell into the end zone. If the rotation of the ball turned on either of those two bounces, it could have dropped on the back side of the bar and been good. Indeed, isn’t life often about the “bounce-of-the-ball?”

Parkey said in a post-game interview, “There’s really no answer to it. I thought I hit (with my foot) a good ball. It’s one of the worst feelings in the world to let your T*E*A*M down. I feel terrible.” Wait just a darn minute before you jump all over Parkey. Replays showed that Eagles defensive tackle #90 Treyvon Hester (6’2” 304 lbs.) jumped-up to get his finger-tips on that kicked ball just enough to divert it off course!

Perhaps you missed getting a promotion that was diverted off course. Or when you lost your job were told, “Well, that’s just the way the ball bounces!” Yes, like the bounce of Parkey’s ball, sometimes your life takes a bounce on which you didn’t plan. You prepared; you did your best, but the ball didn’t bounce your way. For Parkey, twice it didn’t bounce his way.

Haven’t we all been there at one time or another? You prepare, you gave it your best shot and then it bounced in another direction. Perhaps you missed getting a promotion that went to another candidate. How do you deal with it, when the bounce doesn’t go your way?

It’s called mindset! Move on! Continue to believe in yourself. Prepare for the next opportunity. Because it will come!

Will you maintain your self-confidence when the bounce doesn’t go your way?

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 To contact Jim, go to JimTunney.com or email Jim@JimTunney.com. Jim’s books are full of inspiration and interesting stories. Please visit his online store to learn more. Be sure to get Jim’s book ‘Another 101 Best of TunneySide of Sports’ by clicking this link or using the email above to contact Jim directly. These TunneySides take issues from real-life situations and relate them as inspiration for the betterment of others. Jim is available for speaking engagements on leadership and T*E*A*M Building. His books are available for $20 which includes shipping and tax. The Tunney Bobblehead is available for $30. Please visit JimTunney.com. Thank you!

On The TunneySide of Sports January 7, 2019 #726 Up next… Black Monday

After further review… There are only a few really exciting jobs in the world– playing or coaching in the NFL sure sounds like two of them. However, when you experience what took place as we close the 2018 regular season, you might want to adjust your sights. Twenty-five percent of NFL coaches were fired this season. Okay, so maybe you just want to be a player. In August each season some 90-100 players are invited to each team’s pre-season camp. By early September only 53 remain on the T*E*A*M roster – that’s about 50 percent! It happens every year! But, firing 8 of the 32 head coaches this year is bound to catch one’s attention.

A couple of statements by former NFL coaches to keep in mind about these firings. The late Oail Andrew “Bum” Phillips of the Houston Oilers (1975-1980) once told me: “There are two kinds of coaches – ones that’s been fired and ones that’s about to be fired.” Former Philadelphia Eagles and St. Louis Rams head coach, Dick Vermeil, once said, “In the NFL you don’t get paid to coach, you get paid to win.” None of those fired this season have their team in this year’s playoffs.

There are some surprises. Green Bay Packers fired long-time (2006–2018) head coach Mike McCarthy, who won Super Bowl (XLV) and often had the Packers in the playoffs. McCarthy was fired mid-season – not a usual occurrence. Already he has been mentioned as a candidate for several vacancies. Hue Jackson, head coach of the Cleveland Browns fired early in the 2018 season, is now a candidate for a couple of these vacancies. It’s called the “NFL Carrousel.”

Marv Lewis, 16 years as head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals was 0-7 in the playoffs, and this year finished in last place in the AFC North division.  Steve Wilks, head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, fired after a 3-13 season. It was only Wilks first season, which is somewhat unusual. Is one year enough time to fairly judge a head coach’s capabilities?

Also fired on Black Monday were Vance Joseph, Denver Broncos (6-10); and Todd Bowles, New York Jets (4-12), both with first year quarterbacks. Also released were Adam Gase, head coach of the Miami Dolphins (7-9)) and Dick Koetter, head coach of the Tampa Bay Bucs ( 5-11), whose teams suffered costly injuries. Looks like Phillips and Vermeil summed it up pretty well.

Will you log-in with your thoughts on the firings of NFL head coaches?

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 To contact Jim, go to JimTunney.com or email Jim@JimTunney.com. Jim’s books are full of inspiration and interesting stories. Please visit his online store to learn more. Be sure to get Jim’s book ‘Another 101 Best of TunneySide of Sports’ by clicking this link or using the email above to contact Jim directly. These TunneySides take issues from real-life situations and relate them as inspiration for the betterment of others. Jim is available for speaking engagements on leadership and T*E*A*M Building. His books are available for $20 which includes shipping and tax. The Tunney Bobblehead is available for $30. Please visit JimTunney.com. Thank you!