Finally . . . The Super Bowl!
February 7, 2010 
14 Comments
Is it just me, or do you think the Saints and the Colts have suffered from a severe case of approach anxiety? I mean, can you imagine waiting two weeks for the big game?
A lot of you guys see a woman, you can’t approach her and five minutes later she is gone. All the while that five minutes feels like two weeks to you.
Can you imagine the amount of anxiety that builds up over an actual two week period? Can you imagine during a period of two weeks how many scenarios you go through in your mind, how much game films you watch and how much over-analyzing you do?
A friend of mine played in the Super Bowl one year, and he said he didn’t even realize that he was actually there until the second quarter. The surreal feeling of being there was that overwhelming.
It’s kind of like getting all jazzed for that big New Year’s Eve party, only to get there and not be able to participate in the way you wanted. You knew I would turn this blog into one about mindset somehow, right?
So which team is going to win today? The team that will win today is the one that does not get into their head.
It’s the team that stays focused after a turnover. It’s the team that doesn’t second guess a play. It’s the team that doesn’t come in with a conservative game plan just because it’s the Super Bowl. Everything is magnified today — every missed field goal, every sack, and every interception.
It’s like someone telling you that you have four hours to get laid, but you’ve never even had a one-night stand before. As the clock ticks and you’re in the second half of your four hour deadline not even having approached a woman yet, each minute becomes more critical and each conversation becomes more pressure-filled.
The winner of the game will feel no pressure. Wait, I take that back. That team will feel the pressure, but they won’t let it bother them.
Football is all mental. Someone is going to get into the head of another player. Someone is going to blitz Brees and put some doubt into his mind. I’ve seen people try to do it to Peyton Manning, but it never works.
Someone is going to fumble as their team is driving towards a score. Someone is going to drop an easy pass over the middle that would have given them a badly-needed first down. The team that wins, though, is the one who forgets the interception, the missed tackle and the punt.
Do you see a theme here?
How many of you forget about a missed opportunity? How many of you get blown off by a woman you approach and are able to get over it immediately?
The team that wins today will be the one that has a short memory. Notice, too, that I say team.
Manning may get two interceptions today. Wayne may get hit and knocked to the ground. What they both will do if those things happen is forget about them and make adjustments in the next play.
I want all of you to watch the game and realize that it is not really a game just of skill. It is, in large part, a game all about mindset.
So how is the game going to end today? What will be happening when the clock runs out at the end of the fourth quarter?
It is going to end with one quarterback going to Disney World, and the other quarterback going through hell. One quarterback is going to get an ugly, oversized Cadillac, while the other one will have to be interviewed by ESPN with his hair soaking wet and that dejected look on his face.
Which team is going to win? Is it going to be Manning or Brees? Here is who is not going to win: Brett Favre or Mark Sanchez.
The Saints can win if they play a perfect game. Sean Payton has to call the perfect game, something he hasn’t done on numerous occasions this year. He tends to get frozen and conservative at times.
As for Jim Caldwell, he’s just the guy who stands on the sidelines. The real coach of that team is Peyton Manning. That is no knock on Jim Caldwell at all. Peyton Manning is just a genius.
My heart wants the Saints to win, because my love is from New Orleans. My brain and all my years watching football, however, tell me that no one is beating Manning and the Colts today.
Sometimes, though, the heart can really out-do the brain. So I am going to go out on a limb and predict that the the Saints will score 30, while Manning and the Colts will score 27.
I will, however, say this (and I feel a little like Shannon Sharpe here): The game can easily end up with the Colts beating the Saints with a score of 41-21. Having said that, I am going to predict that after 40 years in the NFL, the New Orleans Saints are due.
I may be right or I may be wrong, but in life it really doesn’t matter. It’s all about going with your heart. That is today’s lesson.
David, LOVE this blog … and I’ve never heard a better explanation of what the mindset needs to be in dating (and football!)
Not begin able to get out of our own heads is, in my opinion, the cause of most of our problems and the reason we don’t overcome most of our obstacles in life.
It is not about our skill set, how smart we are, how good looking we are, what we’re wearing or anything else…
It is because we get in our OWN way.
I am just as guilty of this as anyone — and the way most of us approach our dating lives, none of us would make it to the Super Bowl, let alone win it.
Thanks D, for an awesome kick in the ass today!
OH… and GO COLTS!
Looks like your heart was correct this time, David.
This one of the comment from nfl.com blog, is this guy crazy or what?
“New Orleans did not deserve it. I hope Katrina comes and wipes out your filthy failure of a city once and for all. I hope Drew Brees, his wife, and his daughter get murdered in their house tonight. Who dat? Not the Saints. 0-16 next season. So yeah, EPIC FAIL for Saints.”
The blog was right on today, as always taking notes and learning new things.
Thank you for all the free blogs and podcast!
Lance- he is crazy for sure:(
I guessed the right score, but, not the right winner. Do I get anything for that?
i can’t believe the Saints won….. Peyton may be a great QB but w/o a few more rings he cant go down as one of the best
Hey Lance and Rick, I bet the reason the NFL.com blog guy was pissed was because in his heart he
wanted the Saints to win and thought that deep down that they had a chance but he went with his head and put all his money on the Colts — the team that was “supposed” to win, the conventional wisdom pick.
Oh, I also think it is cosmic justice that the Saints won after they went for the onside kick. That really changed the dynamic of the game. And the Colts were punished for not trying to go for an undefeated season. I think that threw the Colts off.
Lance – That guy is an idiot. What kind of moron insults a guy’s wife and children to be murdered? that is wrong. But nah, whatever.
I’m not really following the football (I’m residing in the Philippines) but hey, congrats to the Saints!
Hopefully I can catch a replay of the game on my local sport.
And great topic again! Going with the heart! brilliant lesson!
correcti on… hope to cacth the replay on the local sports channel.
Ha! I know nothing about football and David always teases me for it. But I’m all for the Saints cuz they have a cool logo for their team symbol: the fleur de lys!!!
Wow, I love the analogies used! Great way to describe the mentality of what it takes to play the dating game
Khiem: Lol, man, that is the first time I hear someone cheer for a team based on their team symbol, hahaha
. Do you follow any other sports? 
Dave, you really have a teaching talent. The way you make comparisons that we can all relate to is a wonderful gift.
“Football is all mental. Someone is going to get into the head of another player. Someone is going to blitz Brees and put some doubt into his mind. I’ve seen people try to do it to Peyton Manning, but it never works”
Maybe Sunday it did work on Manning. He’s human. We saw that. He doesn’t walk on water.
It was Brees’ turn to be “In The Zone” this time. And I’m happy for New Orleans. This is their first and a very long time coming. And considering recent history for their city, they needed this morale booster.