A 'FAKE' PUNT
Coach hits the books for answer to brutal season
BEN McAdoo’s commute to the team’s training facility in East Rutherford, N.J., offers him a chance to listen to audiobooks. His favorites are mostly self-help and motivational.
“I have a chance to listen to a lot of things on my way to and from work,” McAdoo revealed Friday. “I get a lot of my ideas there.”
No doubt McAdoo could use a few words of encouragement and direction this week after players anonymously questioned his coaching style and said he had “lost the team.” It was unfriendly fire that prompted more questions about his leadership in just his second season as the Giants head coach.
The 1-7 record heading into Sunday’s game against the 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif., is bad enough. But McAdoo has suspended two players in recent weeks and now has to deal with unidentified players causing a distraction. Valid or not, anonymous sources have added fuel to the notion McAdoo’s job is in jeopardy amid what already has been a disappointing season and is approaching embarrassing.
So what is McAdoo listening to during this week of “drama” as he called it? “The 5 Second Rule” by Mel Robbins.
A little investigation reveals the book promises to “transform your life, work and confidence with everyday courage.” It talks about acting on an instinct within five seconds before your brain shuts it down. “You can change your life one five-second decision at a time,” Robbins says during a recorded preview of the book, “It is the secret to changing anything.”
According to the national bestseller, it takes just five seconds to: become confident; break the habit of procrastination and self-doubt; beat fear and uncertainty; stop worrying and feel happier; and share your ideas with courage. Robbins said she created the rule when everything was falling apart in her life. McAdoo can empathize.
This is clearly the lowest point of his coaching career, though he did seem more upbeat and more confident Friday. He conducted his press conference in front of the Giants’ Hall of Fame wall, standing with Vince Lombardi over his right shoulder and Wellington Mara over his left.
Yet, McAdoo turned into President Trump, calling the report by anonymous players “fake news” and insisted “we’re excited to go jump on a plane, go cross-country and play in a ball game.”
There’s a lot of talk about courage in “The 5 Second Rule” and perhaps that’s what McAdoo needs most during the upcoming weeks. He has to have the courage to believe in his ability even if others are beginning to doubt.
He wouldn’t be human if he wasn’t second-guessing his own decisions. He and the Giants coaching staff spent the entire bye week evaluating the team for strengths and weaknesses. They tossed out bad plays and concentrated on the productive ones. They evaluated personnel and made certain players could actually do what the coaches expected. Then they lost 51-17 to the Rams. At home.
This is when the Giants need leadership most, especially from their head coach. McAdoo is in a difficult situa- tion because he has a team built to win now that is underachieving. They also have no identity. Are they a power team? A passing team? A physical team? A smart team? McAdoo needs to figure that out or his tenure in East Rutherford will be short.
Maybe “The 5 Second Rule” helps him this week, though it’s going to take four good quarters for the Giants to win even against the 49ers. They haven’t won a game, but the Niners (0-9) gained a measure of real confidence after acquiring quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo from New England.
“Building Real Confidence” is discussed in Part 5 of “The 5 Second Rule.” Let’s hope McAdoo has gotten that far.