Agree or disagree: The two most RESILIENT teams left in the playoffs are the New York Giants and San Diego Chargers.
If you don't agree, which two remaining teams do you think are most resilient, or battle-tested?
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Resilience could be said to be the secret championship ingredient. Champions are champions because they overcame adversity, and grew stronger in the process of doing so. Resilience can be measured in different ways. For example by the ability to come back from halftime or 3Q deficits. But also by the way the Chargers have fought back from the brink of certain death.
A good example is last year's Superbowl. The undefeated Pats had everything going for them, except resilience. They had never been really tested. And the Giants, heavy underdogs, seemed to have nothing going for them, except ... a remarkable resilience; developed in the previous four games. The rest is history.
The way I see it the Giants are banking on their resilience, i.e. they have established it in the past but are no longer developing it. And the Chargers continue to build it.
Teams with great resilience are teams of destiny. They get slammed into the ground, but they get up again. Slammed into the ground, and get up again. Over and over. They never give up. That's the problem. For the opponent.
Look at the last Chargers game. Total domination over Colts in 2H, but nothing was going right for them on the scoring end. They were one 3rd down conversion away from elimination. And they slammed Manning, the newly crowned NFL, into the goal line; like a naughty boy for even thinking to throw that ball.
Now place that determination, first shown in a one point last gasp must-win victory at Kansas a month earlier, against the series of heart-breaking last minute losses earlier in the Chargers season. Not only have they learned how to win close games, but those early losses have become key to what they are now and what they could very well become: unbeatable.
Resilience doesn't show up in the stats. That's why the Chargers are getting 6 points on the road against the Steelers. The public still sees a 9-8 team and may even believe that the refs stole the last game from the overpowered Colts. It all fits the picture of the most resilient team remaining under the radar.
Please convince me, with examples, that other teams at this point in the playoffs have greater resilience.
If you don't agree, which two remaining teams do you think are most resilient, or battle-tested?
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Resilience could be said to be the secret championship ingredient. Champions are champions because they overcame adversity, and grew stronger in the process of doing so. Resilience can be measured in different ways. For example by the ability to come back from halftime or 3Q deficits. But also by the way the Chargers have fought back from the brink of certain death.
A good example is last year's Superbowl. The undefeated Pats had everything going for them, except resilience. They had never been really tested. And the Giants, heavy underdogs, seemed to have nothing going for them, except ... a remarkable resilience; developed in the previous four games. The rest is history.
The way I see it the Giants are banking on their resilience, i.e. they have established it in the past but are no longer developing it. And the Chargers continue to build it.
Teams with great resilience are teams of destiny. They get slammed into the ground, but they get up again. Slammed into the ground, and get up again. Over and over. They never give up. That's the problem. For the opponent.
Look at the last Chargers game. Total domination over Colts in 2H, but nothing was going right for them on the scoring end. They were one 3rd down conversion away from elimination. And they slammed Manning, the newly crowned NFL, into the goal line; like a naughty boy for even thinking to throw that ball.
Now place that determination, first shown in a one point last gasp must-win victory at Kansas a month earlier, against the series of heart-breaking last minute losses earlier in the Chargers season. Not only have they learned how to win close games, but those early losses have become key to what they are now and what they could very well become: unbeatable.
Resilience doesn't show up in the stats. That's why the Chargers are getting 6 points on the road against the Steelers. The public still sees a 9-8 team and may even believe that the refs stole the last game from the overpowered Colts. It all fits the picture of the most resilient team remaining under the radar.
Please convince me, with examples, that other teams at this point in the playoffs have greater resilience.
They found ways to lose, early on. But they tightened up their D, and are finding ways to win now. If you want to attribute it to luck, fine. I brought up resilience because not many gamblers talk about it, and there are ways to measure it. And because, until I recognized its importance, I often thought the team raising the trophy didn't really deserve to.