Do not underestimate the power of "want to"

CouchCoach

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Did you get the feeling, really too many times for me, that some of these players didn't want to take the field?

They were getting maligned during games on TV and after games in the media, they were confused and therefore too hesitant to move quickly and risk further embarrassment.

These guys go home to family and friends and they're normal people with the usual human emotions. Think that didn't play with their heads a little?

They were really leaderless on the field and by their coordinator on defense and just out there.....lost.

Now, the chance arrives to erase all of that with a new coordinator, and one known for being a players' coach, which was part of Buddy Ryan's magic. D players are a different breed and will feed off their guy as long as he's their guy. Last season, they did not have their guy. They didn't have anybody. I don't think we know how really tough that was on players used to being coached by their guy.

"Want to" is going to be all over this team. Beginning with the QB and OL to show they're ready for combat. But that D, that D is really going to be overcharged on "want to" because that bitter taste in their mouths can be made to go away and forgotten because the fact is everyone wants to forget it, just give us a reason to forget it.

"Want to" doesn't increase talent but the opposite can surely nullify it. Last season they lacked belief and justifiably so, so Quinn's first job is to instill that belief and he's already ahead of where Nolan ever was. They believe in him and his system to put them in the best possible position to succeed and they upgraded the talent on top of that. It's a mix of old and new but with the same vision.

It is for this reason that I believe this defense is already better and not just marginally, I think we're going to be surprised in what we see from these guys this year. Lawrence, Gregory, Smith and Vander Esch will be reborn and the sophs like Diggs and Gallimore will take bigger steps and the rooks will get acclimated and into rotation.

That "want to" doesn't just apply to players. This DC is coming off being fired and needs to get back up on that horse and reclaim himself. And the difference between him and Nolan is that he understands the players are his allies in achieving that. He wants to coach them and they want to be coached by him and that's already a lot better than last season.

And me? I "want to" see this defense take the field and I could not say that last season. And I might be selling myself here but I don't care if I am. Feels good to feel this way about the team for a change and I'll take it.
 

JoeKing

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When just being a professional athlete is more important than being a champion, this is what you get. Getting paid ruined Zeke, ruined D Law and it will ruin Cooper and Dak.
 

tyke1doe

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It's the rare individual who burns 100 percent passion, discipline, commitment to excellent, etc. That's why they end up in that rarified air occupied by Tom Brady, Ray Lewis, Jerry Rice, Lawrence Taylor, etc.

The others are a product of their environments and are heavily influenced by their environments and the people who occupy those environments. So if you have no confidence in your organization, your coach, your position coaches, your scheme, etc., you succumb to it/them.

That's what has and is happening to the Cowboys. I refuse to believe that all these players suck. I think it has to do with the culture. I don't think they're among the rare players, but they're good players. But I don't think they trust the coaches, the schemes or the culture. And what we've seen over the years is they just can't push pass their coaching, the culture and the scheme, and they simply give up.

Let's see if the new recruits and the new defensive coach can change or rise above the current culture. I have my doubts, but there's a sliver of hope within my breast.
 

Praxit

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When just being a professional athlete is more important than being a champion, this is what you get. Getting paid ruined Zeke, ruined D Law and it will ruin Cooper and Dak.
...I think its more on the culture atmosphere in Dallas. We know this and seen it all along. No accountability on players. Since the days of Wade, Dallas has been Slack football. How many games can you recall they looked undisciplined out there?

Lets hope MM and Quinn change the formula a bit.
 

Bobhaze

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Did you get the feeling, really too many times for me, that some of these players didn't want to take the field?

They were getting maligned during games on TV and after games in the media, they were confused and therefore too hesitant to move quickly and risk further embarrassment.

These guys go home to family and friends and they're normal people with the usual human emotions. Think that didn't play with their heads a little?

They were really leaderless on the field and by their coordinator on defense and just out there.....lost.

Now, the chance arrives to erase all of that with a new coordinator, and one known for being a players' coach, which was part of Buddy Ryan's magic. D players are a different breed and will feed off their guy as long as he's their guy. Last season, they did not have their guy. They didn't have anybody. I don't think we know how really tough that was on players used to being coached by their guy.

"Want to" is going to be all over this team. Beginning with the QB and OL to show they're ready for combat. But that D, that D is really going to be overcharged on "want to" because that bitter taste in their mouths can be made to go away and forgotten because the fact is everyone wants to forget it, just give us a reason to forget it.

"Want to" doesn't increase talent but the opposite can surely nullify it. Last season they lacked belief and justifiably so, so Quinn's first job is to instill that belief and he's already ahead of where Nolan ever was. They believe in him and his system to put them in the best possible position to succeed and they upgraded the talent on top of that. It's a mix of old and new but with the same vision.

It is for this reason that I believe this defense is already better and not just marginally, I think we're going to be surprised in what we see from these guys this year. Lawrence, Gregory, Smith and Vander Esch will be reborn and the sophs like Diggs and Gallimore will take bigger steps and the rooks will get acclimated and into rotation.

That "want to" doesn't just apply to players. This DC is coming off being fired and needs to get back up on that horse and reclaim himself. And the difference between him and Nolan is that he understands the players are his allies in achieving that. He wants to coach them and they want to be coached by him and that's already a lot better than last season.

And me? I "want to" see this defense take the field and I could not say that last season. And I might be selling myself here but I don't care if I am. Feels good to feel this way about the team for a change and I'll take it.
No question last year was psychological hit for the defensive players. In addition to all the things you listed Coach, these players were also dealing with the burden of the coronavirus which they had to avoid, but it also cut back on their ability to collaborate as teammates.

And as you said, bringing in Mike Nolan with the big changes to the head space of these guys was a recipe for a defensive collapse. When I listen to Dan Quinn talk, he sounds like a leader. Confidence can cover some mistakes. If he earns these players’ trust and respect, the players’ confidence can return as well.

Confidence feeds “want to”. And vice-versa. This coming season sets up well for many people on this team to capture some redemption. If last year's pitiful performance doesn’t motivate these guys, noth8ng will.
 

Runwildboys

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When just being a professional athlete is more important than being a champion, this is what you get. Getting paid ruined Zeke, ruined D Law and it will ruin Cooper and Dak.
I blame free agency and the salary cap. They don't have the pride of beating the Hell out of their hated rivals anymore, because they might be on that team next contract time.
 

TwoCentPlain

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Defense gave up last year. It was easy to see. They sucked and knew it. Getting LVE back and adding the rooks to players who showed improvement will make a huge difference.

The going got tough the first 4 games of the year. Not one legitimate victory. The Atlanta win was worse than a Hail Mary since the team had no business even being in the game and knew it.

This team got smacked in the mouth for 4 straight weeks and did not respond. The team was getting smacked in the mouth against the 0-5 Giants without Barkley. It was a two point difference when Dak got hurt. Both the offense and defense got the excuse they needed when Dak got hurt.

The whole team was just going through the motions. I am guessing the virus was in the back of their minds and they knew they just weren’t that good on defense and offense.
 

CouchCoach

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The going got tough the first 4 games of the year. Not one legitimate victory. The Atlanta win was worse than a Hail Mary since the team had no business even being in the game and knew it.

This team got smacked in the mouth for 4 straight weeks and did not respond. The team was getting smacked in the mouth against the 0-5 Giants without Barkley. It was a two point difference when Dak got hurt. Both the offense and defense got the excuse they needed when Dak got hurt.

The whole team was just going through the motions. I am guessing the virus was in the back of their minds and they knew they just weren’t that good on defense and offense.
There is something to that and I remember an interview with Belichick some years back and the question was asked about his preparation, it was rumored to be obsessive. He got a question reminiscent of a Steve Dennis one Parcells used to just stare at him over when he was asked how important is preparation to you?

He paused and in his own effusive style said "it's not as important to me as it is to the players". I recalled how many of his players have said the same thing about playing for him, he always has us prepared.......more prepared than the other teams. There is such confidence in that they could come back for 25 down to win another ring.
 

Montanalo

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I am waiting for that in-depth interview with Sean Lee regarding what happened in 2020. I don't necessarily want a finger-pointing session, but rather an honest view of how last year happened and more importantly what&s different this year (aside from Quinn).
 

Montanalo

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The difference between "want to" and "have to" is the difference between discretionary effort and compliance. You see both on display everywhere - the business world, education, the workplace, sports, etc. At the heart of the matter is the organizations culture and it's leadership. Everything flows from there.
 

CowboyRoy

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Did you get the feeling, really too many times for me, that some of these players didn't want to take the field?

They were getting maligned during games on TV and after games in the media, they were confused and therefore too hesitant to move quickly and risk further embarrassment.

These guys go home to family and friends and they're normal people with the usual human emotions. Think that didn't play with their heads a little?

They were really leaderless on the field and by their coordinator on defense and just out there.....lost.

Now, the chance arrives to erase all of that with a new coordinator, and one known for being a players' coach, which was part of Buddy Ryan's magic. D players are a different breed and will feed off their guy as long as he's their guy. Last season, they did not have their guy. They didn't have anybody. I don't think we know how really tough that was on players used to being coached by their guy.

"Want to" is going to be all over this team. Beginning with the QB and OL to show they're ready for combat. But that D, that D is really going to be overcharged on "want to" because that bitter taste in their mouths can be made to go away and forgotten because the fact is everyone wants to forget it, just give us a reason to forget it.

"Want to" doesn't increase talent but the opposite can surely nullify it. Last season they lacked belief and justifiably so, so Quinn's first job is to instill that belief and he's already ahead of where Nolan ever was. They believe in him and his system to put them in the best possible position to succeed and they upgraded the talent on top of that. It's a mix of old and new but with the same vision.

It is for this reason that I believe this defense is already better and not just marginally, I think we're going to be surprised in what we see from these guys this year. Lawrence, Gregory, Smith and Vander Esch will be reborn and the sophs like Diggs and Gallimore will take bigger steps and the rooks will get acclimated and into rotation.

That "want to" doesn't just apply to players. This DC is coming off being fired and needs to get back up on that horse and reclaim himself. And the difference between him and Nolan is that he understands the players are his allies in achieving that. He wants to coach them and they want to be coached by him and that's already a lot better than last season.

And me? I "want to" see this defense take the field and I could not say that last season. And I might be selling myself here but I don't care if I am. Feels good to feel this way about the team for a change and I'll take it.

I got the feeling, as in years past, that the players just suck at what they do.
 

CowboyRoy

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Someone just woke up, good morning sunshine.

How did it ruin Dak seeing as though he just got paid? :lmao2:

Dont put Dak in the same category as Zeke the drunk women beater.

Fact is that Zeke just wasnt as good as many thought he was. Dak on the other hand has gotten better and better as the team around him as gotten worse.
 

stilltheguru

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Defense gave up last year. It was easy to see. They sucked and knew it. Getting LVE back and adding the rooks to players who showed improvement will make a huge difference.
Lve was one of the main quitters. Only wilson, dlaw, diggs and gregory didnt quit.
 

Typhus

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How did it ruin Dak seeing as though he just got paid? :lmao2:

Dont put Dak in the same category as Zeke the drunk women beater.

Fact is that Zeke just wasnt as good as many thought he was. Dak on the other hand has gotten better and better as the team around him as gotten worse.
You go to some crazy far off places sometimes, a lot of times.
 

75boyz

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When just being a professional athlete is more important than being a champion, this is what you get. Getting paid ruined Zeke, ruined D Law and it will ruin Cooper and Dak.

So true. My opinion on Second Contract Syndrome. It is real and often exposes the true identity of players who are given them.
 

75boyz

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The difference between "want to" and "have to" is the difference between discretionary effort and compliance. You see both on display everywhere - the business world, education, the workplace, sports, etc. At the heart of the matter is the organizations culture and it's leadership. Everything flows from there.

Really good stuff man. Nice post.
 
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