Terror is a paralyzing weapon. Since 9/11, we have been terrified of what terrorist
"might" do to us, spending billions to change our way of life. But the strategy of "terror"
is used all the time - by bosses, parents, friends and more than we'd like to admit, by loved ones.
In sports, this very tactic has won numerous
championships. The Oakland Raiders
in the 70's. The Pittsburgh
Steelers in any era. Greg Popovich
used this strategy to defeat Mike D'Antoni's superior Phoenix Suns year after
year, until D'Antoni got frustrated and joined the Knicks.
As Robert Greene explains it, "the goal of terror is
provoking maximum chaos and forcing the other side into
overreaction". This is as
dirty as it gets and applying it is done with the maximum of risks, as you will
see in this familiar story...
THE ANATOMY OF PANIC
In 2008, three years after head coach Sean Payton was hired,
the New Orleans Saints endured another disappointing season. Payton created one of the most dynamic
offenses the league had ever seen, but no defense to speak of. The Saints could pile up points but
could not stop anyone from doing the same thing - and usually lost. Payton was frustrated.
Payton decided to hire one of the most sought after
defensive coordinators, Gregg Williams, who's relentless defenses usually
ranked in the top 5. Payton was so
desperate to shed the "soft" image of his team, that he took a
$250,000 pay cut to hire Williams.
It was worth every penny. The Saints became a feared defensive juggernaut. Their attacking style netted 35
takeaways (2nd in the league), which they would cause by constantly attacking
the quarterback, who would lose his cool and pass earlier than he should (to
avoid getting blasted). Gregg
Williams' defense seemed more interested in hurting a quarterback than winning
- but it was working. The Saints
entered the playoffs with home field advantage.
Their first foe were the Arizona Cardinals, led by Kurt
Warner (who took the Cardinals to the Superbowl only the year before). But before Warner could display his brilliance, he was knocked out of the game - and the Saints offense, led
by Drew Brees, piled up points in a dominating performance.
The Saints next faced the Minnesota Vikings led by the
legendary Brett Favre. They
knocked the 40 year old quarterback like a rag doll. But no matter how hard and they hit him,
Favre kept getting up for more.
With less than a minute left, Favre had the Vikings in the
perfect position to win. With the
score tied, Favre would only need a couple more yards to put his kicker Ryan Longwell
in a position to score 3 points and win.
Gregg Williams' strategy appeared to have failed, until the
moment when Favre had a choice to run for a few yards (which he easily could
have) or pass the ball to one of his receivers. Brett chose to pass and was intercepted. Williams' strategy - battering Favre like a pinball -
instilled enough doubt in the quarterback's decision making to cause him into
making the wrong decision at the worse time.
The Saints advanced to the Superbowl for the first time in
their history, facing a quarterback who lived to break down defenses, Peyton
Manning. The Indianapolis Colts'
star quarterback had two weeks to study tape and would be prepared for Gregg's
William's relentless defense.
The Colts were also the only team to win more games than the
Saints. And the championship game
proved to be a mano y mano battle of wills that went back and forth until the finally
4 minutes, with the Saints leading by a single touchdown, 24-17.
Manning was on the verge of tying the game, leading the
Colts to the red zone. Now would
be the moment when Gregg Williams' hire would prove it's greatest value, or failure. The Saints blitzed Manning
like a pack of wolves, forcing him into a pass. Saints corner Tracy Porter intercepted Manning and returned the ball 70 yards to seal the Saints' first championship, 31-17. In his first year with the Saints, Gregg Williams netted the Saints' much coveted championship.
INTERPRETATION
When Peyton Manning studied the tape of the Saints defense,
he saw two things, 1) how to defeat them and 2) How the Saints battered
quarterbacks. Including what they
did to Kurt Warner (they ended his career that night) and Brett Favre, whom
they lambasted long after the whistle had blown, even aiming for his knee
caps. Manning did not endure the
same hits as Favre or Warner, but knew it could happen at any moment. He imagined that the Saints was faster
than they were and threw too early.
That is the essence of terror. To create a fear in your opponent they cannot get rid
of. They know you are willing to
hurt them. And this is why
applying this strategy is highly risky and not something I - or Robert Greene -
condones. But it is an important
concept to understand since it is applied so frequently in daily life. Not just physically, but
psychologically.
KEYS TO ENGAGEMENT
Terror is often a strategy of last resort. And generally, terrorists are people
with nothing to lose. This is why
they're willing to die for their cause. Sean Payton had grown so frustrated
with his team, he hired Gregg Williams to run his defense and encouraged him to
build a "nasty" defense at all costs; a result of his own Cobra
Kai-like desperation to win. We
know now about Gregg Williams' "bounty system", rewarding his players
for carting off quarterbacks, but during the Superbowl, it was all fair game -
and netted the championship trophy the city of New Orleans so desperately
needed.
Should you be on the opposing end of a terror campaign, the
best way to counter it is to keep our cool and not overreact. As Robert Greene explains,
"terrorists kick a rock in order to start an avalanche... if mayhem and
chaos ensue, they have great power to influence events".
Alex Smith was on the opposite end of Gregg Williams' final
game as the Saints defensive coordinator, wherein Williams ordered his guys to
break Smith's ACL. Smith kept his
cool and used the Saints' hyper aggresion against them, winning the game in the
final minute. The terror campaign
directed at Smith did not rattle him.
REVERSAL
This strategy can result in violence and perhaps illegal
behavior. Gregg Williams was
suspended indefinitely and Sean Payton for an entire year. We're talking football here. In real life, the repercussions can put
you in jail or lead you into a life and death situation. A "terror campaign" is the
ultimate act of anarchy in this society.
However, in the event of an apocalypse, where society is turned sideways,
that could all change.
No comments:
Post a Comment