Discipline is doing what you really don't want to do so you can do what you really want to do.
I'm a head coach. I'm not a politician, an activist, or an expert on societal issues.
We have rules in the rule book that are very specific. If the quarterback is in a throwing position, he gets protection. But in the event that the ball is handed off, at that instant, there's no telling whether or not he is a runner or not, so he loses that protection.
It's not a born-again thing; it was a peaceful, really, really cool moment where I just felt that I was no longer the dad anymore. I actually had become a son, and it makes things much easier from a day-to-day perspective.
There's obviously a push to protect the quarterback, but you have to give the defensive players a chance. All of the quarterback has to do is pull the ball, and he's a runner. How's the defender going to know if the ball is pulled or not?
As we say from time to time, it's hard to win in the National Football League.
From our perspective, the most important thing is what you do with the players, how you handle them, your ability to communicate with them.
We have to sell a gameplan, and you have to be enthusiastic, and you have to have energy come Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.
Since 2000, it's been a privilege and honor for me to be on the competition committee. And our main focus... is player safety.
I couldn't identify just one, but there's numerous rule changes and points of emphasis that have reflected a change on the field almost immediately. It's hard to avoid the horse-collar tackle, for example, but the players understand why the rule is in there - because of the injury rate prior to us making that a personal foul.
Our philosophy here, guys, is we're going to work as long as we have to to get the work done. I'm not one that wants the coaches to compete to see who can get in the earliest, who stays the latest, who passes themselves on the way into work in the morning.
You're always having those life-skills type discussions about decision-making. It's just making sure you're making good decisions and going about your business. There are distractions in every city.
There's going to be different kinds of challenges on a yearly basis. You're going to have to overcome injuries, or you overcome a playoff loss or what have you. So there's always challenges in this business.