Revenge of the Birds
What kind of developmental growth will the Cardinals see this season from their players?
One thing that sticks in my craw every year is seeing fans be so quick to believe that the coaches must know what they are doing when players get benched or cut.
As a teacher and coach, for right or for wrong, whenever a student or player of mine failed, I blamed myself for not finding and pushing the right buttons in order to get the maximum results. for their sake and the sake of the team. I believe there always is a way to encourage and motivate someone and that the greatest challenge of teaching and coaching is finding those ways.
I can distinctly remember at time at Foxborough High School when I was assigned to mentor a young teacher. His name was Mike. Bright guy. Handsome. Potentially charismatic. When I sat in on one of Mike’s classes, he had a good lesson plan, which he followed fairly well —- but I was hoping to see him be a little more engaged with the students. Mike seemed to talk at the students, rather than with them.
When I tried to encourage him to be a better, more engaged listener for the students, Mike when into an immediate rant about how spoiled and lazy the students are and how his parents would kick his ass if he ever came to class unprepared or missed doing an assignment.
When I responded by asking him whether he expects the vast majority of his students to be ideal types of learners and academic achievers —- Mike said, “well, yeah, why not?”
Thus, when I asked him whether he likes the challenge of motivating and inspiring the more resistant and reluctant students, Mike said, “it shouldn’t have to be my job to motivate them.”
Therefore, I said to Mike, “well then, you are NFL for teaching.”
“What?” Mike asked.
“Not For Long.”
This angered Mike, so I thought and hoped that maybe he would amend his pedagogy.
Instead, Mike got a second job working nights as bartender in the attempt to save some money for law school.
Mike was one-and-done as a teacher.
How coaches effectively engage with players and how they specifically prepare and instill confidence in them is paramount to the players’ success.
When Steve Wilks was hired as the Cardinals’ head coach, it was very clear at his opening press conference that Michael Bidwill and Steve Keim had given him the challenge of motivating “players with different personalities” as a priority.
When Wilks used that term of “players with different personalities,” two of the Cardinals’ recent 1st round draft picks came to mind: T D.J. Humphries and DT Robert Nkemdiche, both of whom, from the very moment they stepped on to the Cardinals’ practice field as rookies were given the name tags of “Knee Deep” and “No Pro” by Bruce Arians and his coaching staff.
During his first few weeks as a head coach, Steve Wilks was...
