NFL and USAF: How similar are we?

  • Published
  • By Capt. Michael Andrews
  • 493rd Aircraft Maintenance Unit
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England --  How many of you love this time of year because the playoffs have started? Do you try to get your house work done early on the weekends so you can sit down in the evening and enjoy the games? Do you get together with friends and root against each other's team just for the fun of it? I'm sure all of you who do, understand the amount of teamwork that goes into making it to the playoffs let alone all the way to the Super Bowl. But how many of you have drawn the correlation between what the players in the National Football League do during football season to what you do all year long?

Let's start by looking at great organizations and what made them great. Each of the past five decades had great teams that were considered dynasties...the Green Bay Packers, the Pittsburgh Steelers, the San Francisco 49ers, the Dallas Cowboys and the New England Patriots. It took a lot of hard work by smart people to place folks in the right position within the organization. The Air Force is now a dynasty of its own. We belong to the most powerful fighting force the world has ever seen, and it got there the same way; smart people with folks in the right position. Those five teams didn't just have their time in the spotlight. They may have had some average seasons, but bounced back and were Super Bowl contenders in other season. The bottom line is they have been great organizations all along, much like the Air Force has been over the same time frame. If you look back at all the campaigns the U.S. has been in, the outcomes may not have been the same, or with as little loss of American lives, if the Air Force had not been involved. These organizations are measured by making the playoffs and how far they advance. We measure ourselves the same way with our awards programs...take the 48th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron for example, they won the 2006 United States Air Forces in Europe Maintenance Effectiveness Award and are poised and ready to compete at the next level, or the second round of the playoffs. So even if you feel like you are having an average season...remember, you currently belong to a dynasty...the world's best!

Now let's break down the organization and look at who leads them at field level: the head coach and his assistants. Each one of those dynasties had great head coaches with great coordinators and assistants. If you have followed the coaching staffs, a lot of the assistants were "mentored" and promoted to the coach of other teams and have led them to the playoffs. It's not hard to figure out where I'm going with this. Our head coaches, the squadron commanders, are surrounded by a successful coaching staff as well. From the chief master sergeants, senior NCOs and first sergeants, to the officers in charge or flight commanders, this coaching staff takes the orders from the head coach and points the squadron in the direction of success. Along the way, the squadron commander and the chiefs ensure the proper mentoring happens to build quality future head coaches and future chiefs.

It is important the head coach puts players on the field where they will excel. Some of these players have more glorious jobs than others and receive all the credit and fame. The great ones never forget to point out it took a lot of hard work in the trenches by the linemen who do the blocking to protect the quarterback or to open up those holes so the running backs can scamper down field. Others are too quick to point the finger at someone else or answer the "why-did-you-lose" question, with "we had protection problems today," blatantly blaming the folks in the trenches for the teams' failure. If you are a star player in a skilled position, don't forget to take a moment and thank the work horses in the trenches for making it happen.

A great offense is put together with high caliber players who execute the plays to put points on the board. There are long hours reading playbooks and studying film to ensure the game plan will be successful against the enemy. The same holds true for us, no matter what squadron we are in, we too have playbooks, Air Force instructions and technical orders. We must follow the playbooks to ensure our mission is completed safely and successfully. A great defense is defined by having a great strategy blitzing schemes and pass rushes and a backfield that knows their assignments and doesn't let anyone get past them. We all joined this organization for different reasons, in each case; patriotism played a huge factor in our decision. We're all here to defend our freedom and the American way of life. The Air Force has a strategy in place, and each one of our assignments, especially in this time of downsizing, is crucial to the defense of our nation. So know your assignment and you won't get beat down field.

Now the part of the team that can make or break you, special teams. These guys start off the game and if either side fails, the tone and momentum are set for the opponent. They are not on the field as long as the offense or defense, but in order for a team to be successful, the special teams must be ready to perform when called upon, like the last second field goal for the win. Being in an Air Expeditionary Force bucket is like being on special teams. When you are not in your bucket, someone else is on the field, and while they are executing the mission, we need to be training to remain proficient because you never know when the coach is going to call on you to put the ball through the uprights.

So, as you go through your routine in order to get ready to take the field, remember, we are part of a dynasty, unmatched by anyone. Put your game face on and show-up motivated in order to own the edge, and for Pete's sake, don't play like the Cleveland Browns.