Culture. Often times, it's just an intangible that not-so-coincidentally correlates with your state in the standings. Look no further than yesterday's game for an example. The Saints are part of the NFL's elite and the Buccaneers operate better as a quarterback carousel than they do as a functional NFL franchise. Case in point, how both teams are viewed off-the-field couldn't run more parallel to what they've put forth on the field. Simply put, the impact culture can have on a team of professional athletes is debatable at best and overstated at worst, as - more often than not - talent trumps all in explaining the outcome in sports. The amount of talent in New Orleans is, without a doubt, the independent variable to their winning formula, while the undeniable fun they've had in creating a collective personality over the last two seasons is the dependent variable. Perhaps that's fitting, however, as there is nothing "independent" about a group whose love for one another is palpable. De'Vante Harris is a young, likable corner who defied the odds of undrafted free agency to claim a spot on a Saints' roster when their secondary was the primary concern. Unfortunately, he's also someone who struggled mightily to retain that spot as the vast majority of his best plays occurred during practice to the point in which it became a running joke as he eventually forced the team's hand in cutting ties. The truth is, the only reason it's not fair to say that he got run out of town is because every Saints fan within driving distance would have offered him a lift if it meant they never had to see him blow another coverage in black & gold. Given that he was as victimized by vitriol as much as he was by opposing quarterbacks, he had plenty of reason to come into yesterday's game with vengeance on his mind. Yet, when said game ended he couldn't help but put aside the fact that he's now on the wrong side of a rivalry and be buddy-buddy with the former teammates he views as family. That, as much as the post-turnover posing and the Stomp The Yard-style celebrations that accompany every Saints' win on social media, speaks to the cohesive culture of a locker room that - from the outside looking in - leaves you so desperately wanting to be sucked in by a level of synergy that even has their competition actively jacking their swagger...
This team isn't just special on Sunday's, and no one knows that better than a player who considers himself fortunate to have been a small part of it, as opposed to feeling scorned by the fact that he no longer is.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Categories
All
Archives
January 2020
|