Society frowns upon the hard ass. We’ve become an emotionally sensitive species that scolds authority figures who infringe upon “your truth.” In life, this person is shamed and sentenced to the cornfield. In football — the greatest reality show of all — this is the character demonized and cast the villain.
There’s a fine line for those in charge of the entire operation. Tyrannical head coaches will not last with this generation of athlete. If players dread going to work, culture suffers. Losses mount. Misery is contagious.
And yet, there’s a fine line in this profession because pro football is not everyday American life. This is a cold, cruel world full of life-altering collisions. If a coach is juuuust the right amount of prick — the hyper-technical scouting term — look out. If a coach on the defensive side of the ball can harness volatility into his coaching style, his X’s and O’s and the players eat it all up? Those 11 players on the field aren’t robotically following a play design on a sheet of paper.
They shape-shift into a pack of jackals.
They essentially laugh in the face of a team that scored 59 points.